Hundreds of students and student-athletes gathered at the CU Arena on the night of Fri, Oct. 19 for Midnight Madness, the annual hype event that gets everyone on campus excited for the upcoming basketball seasons for the men’s and women’s teams. 

Activities during the party outside included pop-a-shot basketball, shooting basketballs into garbage cans and a photo area for groups of students to take fun and friendly pics of each other. After roughly an hour outside, all the students were let into the arena, where they were greeted by the cheer squad with light sticks and music. Sitting down in the main gym bleachers, students were introduced to the team rosters for both the men’s and women’s teams. 

From the perspective of the basketball teams, Midnight Madness was a great way to kick off a new era of competing at the CU Arena, which is an important gathering place as construction is occurring at different spots of campus not too far away from the arena’s location. 

Kayla Cabaccang, junior guard on the women’s team, said that the CU Arena is “a second home for so many athletes. It is important because it is a place where all of the campus can come together to support one another in competition.”

Connor Gleason, graduate guard on the men’s team, said that this year’s Midnight Madness was a chance for him to “appreciate everything it took to get here and all the people that have helped me get here.” 

“It’s a cool reflection point,” Gleason said. He is most excited to “have fun and express trust, responsibility and joy” during his final season playing as a Golden Eagle. He also added that he is excited to live out those values that he holds over a full season. 

This edition of Midnight Madness was Gleason’s fourth and final one as a student-athlete as he was the final player introduced during player introductions inside the CU Arena, which he said was “the best arena in the PacWest, maybe in all of Division II.”

In terms of hype for the upcoming season, Cabaccang said that she is most excited about “the new teams added to our conference and seeing what new competition we will face.” She said, “we will bring energy and excitement to each game as we stick together as a team to navigate the new change.” 

In describing her favorite part of the Midnight Madness experience, Cabaccang said that her favorite part is “the crowd that comes out. It is so cool to feel supported by the whole community of people who want us to succeed and just have a crazy amount of energy and love in one place.” 

The women’s basketball season begins on Fri, Nov. 8 with a road game at Cal State San Bernardino before their first home game on Sat., Nov. 16 against Cal Poly Humboldt. Meanwhile, the men’s team will play their first game of the season at home on Sat., Nov. 2 against Hope International at 2 p.m. 

Arena access for students and faculty is free as long as a Concordia ID card is shown. For more information on the season schedule for the basketball teams, visit the CUI Sports website and be on the watch for home game schedule sheets for all Golden Eagles winter sports teams. 

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