O
n Nov. 17, 2010, the Wisconsin State Building Commission gave final ap- proval to a construction project ad- jacent to the Kohl Center that would
impact multiple athletic programs on the Madi- son campus and bear the name of its lead donors, Charles and Mary Ann LaBahn. "When I saw the plans, my hopes got up for ev- erything,'' said Brianna Decker, a two-time All- American on the Wisconsin women's hockey team and the 2012 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award winner. "I knew everybody wanted the best for the athletes and my expectations were just that.'' After moving her hockey gear into the plush new locker room in LaBahn Arena and skating through a 45-minute practice Tuesday night on the Lance Johnson Memorial Rink ice surface, Decker saw the finished product in a different light, while still meeting all of her expectations. "It was really bright in there,'' she said, "com- pletely different from the Kohl Center.'' She discovered that it was really loud, too, while they were testing the horn signaling a goal. "It was pretty neat to see how loud it was,'' said Decker, who has scored 86 career goals and will put that horn to the ultimate test this season. "It's going to be a riot in here.'' The home opener will be Oct. 19 against Bemi- dji State.
36 ยป VARSITY OCTOBER 4, 2012
"I can't wait,'' Decker said. "Being able to fill it up with fans will be unbelievable.'' The UW women will play all of their home games in the 2,273-seat LaBahn Arena. "I think it will definitely be a (home-ice) advan- tage,'' said Decker. Matching or exceeding, she said, what the Uni-
versity of Minnesota women's team has by play- ing its home games in 3,400-seat Ridder Arena, which is adjacent to Mariucci Arena in Minneapo- lis.
"They use their fans to their advantage,'' Decker said, "and hopefully we'll be able to use ours.'' Both the UW women and men will practice on
the Lance Johnson ice surface, which recognizes a major gift from Peter O. Johnson and his son, Erik S. Johnson, and their families. Peter's son, Lance, was a youth hockey player in Madison who died in a 1987 car accident. Meanwhile, the Kohl Center ice surface will be renamed to honor the memory of legendary Bad- gers coach Bob Johnson (no relation to the afore- mentioned Johnsons) whose son, Mark, is the coach of the women's team. The "Bob Johnson Rink'' will be dedicated on Nov. 2. The Badger men will open their home season Saturday night with an exhibition against the U.S. Under-18 team. Senior center Derek Lee, who will serve as an assistant captain, believes there will
