August 22, 2012 • Baseball

Vince Mancuso: Fundraising Secures Indoor Cage

 

MancusoVince Mancuso, Baseball 

Inclement weather—a staple of Wisconsin’s environment—is no longer a hindrance to practice for the Arrowhead baseball program. That’s because one of the first initiatives of coach Vince Mancuso was realized with the addition of an indoor cage.

“In the past when it was raining, we’d either have to just cancel practice or throw down in the wrestling room,” the third-year coach says. “So now we have an indoor cage and a mound where we can actually have the whole team at all levels working out. It worked well during tryouts when we had bad weather.”

Monies for the indoor cage—measuring 70-by-14-by-16 feet—came from fundraising by the players and their families. They sold promotional cards allowing the purchaser to earn discounts at local businesses. They typically offered a buy-one, get-one-free promotion or a discount.

Money raised through fundraising is placed into a special account accessed at Mancuso’s discretion for projects that would not be funded through the athletic budget.

“In today’s world, the athletic budget is getting slashed left and right, so we’re doing a lot more fundraising. In the past, it’s never been done here,” Mancuso says. “As you can see, we have some work that needs to be done, primarily to the infield since the fence is detachable and is torn down to make room for football practices.

“This is a nice facility, but ideally it would be great to upgrade to things like a concession stand, bathrooms and just some of the basics.”


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