The opening of Buser Family Park reinvented K-State soccer for players, coaches and the community
In August 2019, the Kansas State University soccer team stepped into their new home, Buser Family Park, for the first time. Complete with a locker room, team lounge, visiting team locker room, offices for coaches and staff, areas for sports medicine, strength and conditioning; and around 1,400 seats for fans, the facility reinvented K-State soccer.
“It’s a really special feeling,” said Christina Baxter, junior in human development and family science and midfielder. “Walking out here every day and seeing our new stadium is just a reminder of how grateful we are for the donors. It feels like home walking out on the field.”
John ‘78 and Ann ‘80 Buser were inspired to help with building the new facility by close family friends who donated to their alma mater. John and Ann are long-time fans of K-State athletics, so they decided donating to K-State soccer complemented their love for the university and their 16 years of experience serving as soccer parents, coaches and club managers.
For the players, the new facility is more than a place to practice and compete ー it’s a facility that harbors love for the game and the K-State Family.
“We are so grateful that people are taking a chance on K-State soccer because I know that we are going to do great things,” said Bailey Nemechek, redshirt freshman in life sciences and midfielder. “The fact that people want to support us along the way is really remarkable. It just shows how great the K-State family really is.”
As the team continues to compete in the Big 12 Conference, having a new facility not only enhances the players’ experience, but allows for the program to make a name for itself.
Head Coach Mike Dibbini said the impact of the new facility goes beyond the players and recruits.
“It’s a direct impact on all aspects of the program; the student athlete experience, being able to have a home and the fans’ experience of being able to come and sit in one of the nicest facilities in the conference,” Dibinni said. “And the game day experience ー being able to host the best fans and allowing them to use the facilities at its maximum capacity.”
