The new stadium, complete with a multi-use synthetic turf field, press box, permanent bleachers, lighting, and a new scoreboard, will open for the spring 2024 lacrosse season.
Kienzle-Hylbert Stadium marks a significant upgrade to Barclay-Thomsen Field, the home to men’s and women’s soccer programs named for former Denison coach and athletic director Ted Barclay and former men’s lacrosse coach and professor Tommy Thomsen. (Denison will continue to recognize and memorialize Barclay and Thomsen in this space.)
The stadium gets its name from two sets of generous donors: Rick Kienzle ’85 and his wife, Cindy, and Paul Hylbert ʼ66 and his wife, Katharine.
Rick Kienzle ’85
Kienzle, a Denison trustee and former Big Red lacrosse midfielder, launched his career in surgical sales. Over time, he used that training and exposure to partner with biomechanical engineers and launch his own company to develop and support non-invasive spine implants.
“Early in my training, I had to learn the things that were available to me at Denison, like biology, chemistry, and physics,” he said. “It was a pretty circuitous route after majoring in history at a college in central Ohio.”
Today, Kienzle is retired and living just outside Philadelphia and attends Big Red men’s and women’s lacrosse games as often as possible.
Paul Hylbert ’66
Hylbert, a Denison life trustee and chair of the board of directors for Kodiak Building Partners, has enjoyed a lengthy career in general management, mergers and acquisitions, and startups.
He launched his career at Wickes Corporation, where he spent 21 years, and later served as CEO of PrimeSource, Lanoga Corporation, and ProBuild.
Denison and Big Red athletics are a tradition in the Hylbert family. Hylbert’s father, Paul Sr. ’43; uncle Ray Johnson ’42; brother Tony ’72; daughter Jennifer ’88; and sons Scott ’91 and Brian ’01 all played varsity sports, including basketball, golf, soccer, and lacrosse, and competed in club ice hockey and rugby. Many of Hylbert’s teammates remain among his best friends.