Students and faculty at Nicholls have various options to get in shape without leaving campus. The Cardio and Racquetball Court, located in the Bollinger Memorial Student Union, and the weight room located on the second floor of Stopher Gymnasium are two options. The Cardio and Racquetball Court is open from Monday through Friday from 12 p.m. to 11 p.m. and on Sunday from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. There are five treadmills, six exercise bikes, five elliptical machines and two stair climbers for faculty and students to use, and the room is available to students who live on and off campus.

The Shaver Gymnasium is also open Monday through Thursday from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. for anyone wanting to do freestyle activities such as basketball, badminton and volleyball.

Mike Matherne, director of the Office of Campus Recreation, said he saw Nicholls as an “opportunity for growth.” When he first started at Nicholls in 2000, the cardio room only contained one racquetball court.

He built the cardio room, which cost more than $125,000. He said students enjoy using the cardio room because they have “cardio theatre,” which means students can watch one of the six televisions located in the room while they work out.

The weight room in Stopher Gym contains more than $25,000 in equipment, including weights, squat racks, barbells and weight benches.

In about six months, the University will also have new intramural fields, costing about $500,000, two new flag football fields and one new softball field. The fields will be located on Bowie Road across from La Maision du Bayou Apartments.

Joseph Washington, culinary senior from White Castle, said, “The hours for the cardio room could be better, and I dislike only having one racquetball court.” Washington said he would rather work out on campus because he has no transportation and it is close to his residence hall. He likes using Nicholls’ facilities, particularly the racquetball court, but does not use them often because “people often trash the racquetball court.”

Even though there are various facilities available to students and staff, free of charge, not many of them are used, Matherne said.

During this semester students can join intramural basketball and softball teams. The basketball games begin in about three weeks, and softball begins in March.