The village of Bluffton will see its annual population spike this weekend, beginning Friday, Aug. 26, with about 280 new first-year and transfer students moving onto the Bluffton University campus.
New student move-in, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, will open a weekend on which other Bluffton undergraduates will return to campus for the start of classes Monday, Aug. 29.
Bluffton University's men's and women's soccer teams will hold a car wash fund-raiser from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 27, according to Rick Nussbaum, coach for both teams.
The annual donation car wash hosted by the soccer teams takes place at Springfield Fireworks between McDonald's and Taco Bell on State Route 103.
All donations are appreciated go toward helping with hotel costs in Chicago for the team's season openers with Moody Bible Institute/Benedictine (men) and St. Joseph's College (women) on Sept. 2 and 3.
After a two-year absence, tennis is back as a varsity sport at Bluffton University. J. Ronald Huber, who is also a member of the athletics halls of fame at both the university and Shawnee High School in Lima, Ohio, will direct the women in 2011. Coach Huber has a young team with no seniors, but plenty of enthusiasm.
Embarking on her first season as the Head Cross Country Coach at Bluffton University, Karen Brandt is excited about the opportunity to work with her athletes and lay the foundation for success in the classroom and on the course.
With five runners for the men and six for the women, Coach Brandt's primary goal is to build a solid program based on both academic and athletic success.
The Bluffton Volleyball Team opens its 2011 season Friday, September 3 in Haverford, PA against the tournament host Fords. Coach Yarnell, who will be entering his seventh season as Bluffton's head coach, hopes to start hot again. In 2010 the Beavers went 9 and 0 before falling to NCAA tournament qualifier Otterbein.
While the 2011 version of Bluffton University men's soccer will be young and inexperienced, the Beavers sport a roster that is much deeper than it was a season ago. "How quickly the freshmen get acclimated to the speed and physicality of the collegiate game will determine how we fare as a team," quipped Head Coach Rick Nussbaum.
Graduate assistant Brandon Ponchak is a new face that will be on the sidelines for Bluffton this fall. "He brings valuable experience from his years of coaching at Dakota Wesleyan.
