Southern Wells (2,500) Built 1966
December 12, 2023: Northfield vs. Southern Wells (Boys)
December 12, 2023: Northfield vs. Southern Wells (Boys)
Sometimes I'm excited to go visit a gym that I've seen pictures of or have heard cool things about from other people. Other times I'm just going in blind. I had seen a couple pictures of Southern Wells, and even had it recommended to me by a friend who knows the area well. I was anxious to see it in person but wasn't sure what to expect. The entire school is built in a series of interconnecting circles. When you drive around the back to the gym, there doesn't seem to be a straight wall anywhere on the structure. This is true for the gym as well which was built as a circular dome. There are a few other domed gyms in the state, but this one sticks out for a few reasons. It's a bit of a paradox when you walk in. It feels like a really big space, but it only seats 2,500. It's a 1A school but feels like it was built for a historical power. It's a rural school with a gym that seems like that it should be seated in the heart of a rust belt town. The oddities only enhance the overall experience.
The first thing you notice when you enter is obviously the ceiling. It's the headliner. It's a beautiful, dark, mahogany circle with 4 layers that work their way to the center. The lights also follow this pattern as they work inward. Outside the dark circle are crisscrossed support beams that weave a tapestry of elegance. The top of a domed arena is aways going to be the centerpiece, and this one does not dissapoint. In the words of my wife the interior designer, "That ceiling is freaking sweet." Agreed.
The floor of the gym clearly hasn't been redone in a few decades. The font and shades of blue and white are straight out of the 80s or 90s. While I can appreciate the more modern finishes that many gyms have gone to these days, that classic look hits you right in the nostalgia. The intertwined S&W at center court is perfect. A unique touch is the Southern Wells script at opposite corners of the floor that curves around the sideline to the baseline instead of just being on one or the other like you typically see. The baskets at each end are rollaways, and I've very curious if they have any others that they pull out to practice in the gym. There are two levels, and identical rows of nice wooden bleachers mirror each other along each sideline. Above them are interesting images. On one side there's a raider, and the other the shadowy outlines of students playing various sports. Kind of odd. The wall above the main entrance has all the school sponsers along with pictures of past athletic teams. The other side has a small section of bleachers for the pep band and in the corner some of my favorite athletic accomplishment banners that I've seen. They're extremely old and seem to be made of the same felt material we used for Bible storyboards in Sunday School when I was 6. Above the pep band bleachers is a really cool sort of crest for the raider mascot. On each side are banners recognizing the 4 schools that consolidated to form Southern Wells in the 60s. I cannot express how much I love when gyms have these kinds of displays to honor the old community schools. I do like how close to the action you can get by standing along the glass above the baseline nearest the main entrance. There are no bleachers on that side, and the only place I've felt that kind of view is at Lafayette Jeff. The only quibbles I have are that the conference team display is downright pathetic, and the only two scoreboards in the gym sit along the sideline walls in the corner of the gym. I can't think of another gym that doesn't have any kind of scoreboard on a baseline wall facing the action.As a fan it doesn't really matter, but that would be incrediby disorienting as a player trying to find it in the heat of the action.
Southern Wells was just a positively delightful gym to attend a game in. The crowd wasn't crazy considering it was a weeknight showdown between two teams most likely destined to finish under .500, but I didn't really notice in the slightest. They had a nice student section chanting at no one in particular on the opposite side like a proper student section will do when necessary. There were FFA awards intermixed with the athletic accomplishments. You could even get a generous ice cream sundae for $3 which evidently is something they've been doing here for decades. The gym itself is a gem in the middle of nowhere. My lovely GPS took me through about 9 straight miles of sketchy county roads to get there, and I was happy to do it. I don't think it's very well known outside the Fort Wayne area, but it shouldn't be overlooked when talking about the best places to watch a game in this part of the state.
