It has hosted dances, Homecomings and school plays.

"It's a wonderful facility and a unique atmosphere. The memories are diverse, and everyone has a unique memory of it," said Matt Hensley, St. Anthony athletic director.

The most memories, however, come from basketball. For 54 years, St. Anthony fans spent their winters turning the gym into a virtual sauna by putting a warm body into every one of its 1,700 seats.

The Goff Gymnasium era ends Friday, when St. Anthony plays its final varsity game against Casey-Westfield at 7:30 p.m.

The gym won't go without a little fanfare. The school is planning a ceremony between the junior-varsity and varsity games. Ten members of the 1949-50 team, along with its coach, Harry Forrester, will be honored. They were the first Bulldog team to play in the gym. St. Anthony is also welcoming back its career 1,000-point scorers, and 12 of 15 are expected to attend.

St. Anthony games are always a tough ticket in Effingham, but Friday night will be special.

"We're expecting," Hensley said, "a huge crowd."

A new gym, this one at the high school, will be able to keep those huge crowds coming. In fact, when the new gym opens in the fall, there will be a 300-seat increase.

But that won't be its only advantage.

"It will do a number of things that will modernize our program. It will increase locker room and storage space, it will have access for the disabled, and it will have a new weight room," Hensley said. "We'll also have the ability to divide the facility for multiple practices to occur."

While Goff Gym's days of hosting basketball games might be close to over, but the gym itself isn't going anywhere. It's currently the only gymnasium for both the high school and grade school. And when the new gym opens this fall, Goff Gym will serve as a practice facility.

Yet, the old place will always be home for many.

"It was a very important part of my life. I enjoyed my whole relationship down there, and the players were just outstanding," Forrester said.

Forrester, a member of the Illinois Basketball Hall of Fame, now resides in Champaign. He was hired in 1949 as St. Anthony's first full-time basketball coach, and was paid $2,800 a year to do it. He cherishes the relationships he formed most, which is why he makes it a priority to keep in touch with his past players.

"I'm thinking it'll probably be the last time I'm with this bunch," he said. "I want to see them real bad. I try to go back and see everybody once a year. There's nothing like it for me."

The facility opened on Nov. 18, 1949 as Memorial Gymnasium, honoring those that died in the St. Anthony Hospital fire of April 4, 1949. It was later renamed Goff Gymnasium in October 1968 in honor of Monsignor John Goff. Goff headed St. Anthony when the gym was constructed.

Ken Ludwig was a member of that '49-50 team. He's amazed how time has left the gym untouched.

"The thing that changed most was the floor. Outside of that, everything else is just the same," Ludwig said. "It didn't change as much as I thought it might."

The floor is bound to change. Wear and tear take their toll, and rule changes through the years required its repainting.

It was that same floor that provided one of Ludwig's most vivid memories of that first game in the gym.

"The custodian was so proud of that floor, and he always kept it in great condition. But he must not have known a thing about basketball," Ludwig said. "He sprayed a mop with oil and everything (before the first game), and I don't think anyone could stand up the rest of the night. We were sliding all over the place."

It didn't take long for the gym to build its reputation for being a tough place to play.

"It was hot and it was wonderful," Forrester said.

It wasn't so long ago that current St. Anthony coach Ron Niebrugge wasn't a welcome sight at Goff Gymnasium. Niebrugge played his high school basketball at rival Teutopolis, and twice had the displeasure of playing at St. Anthony.

"It was awful," Niebrugge said. "There's a tremendous amount of home-court advantage there, and the opposing locker room is right by the Dawg Pound, the St. Anthony student cheering section. It's pretty intimidating, but as a player, it's a great atmosphere to play in."

Niebrugge is also finding out it's a great atmosphere to coach in. He can't put a point value on Goff's home-court advantage, but he knows when an opponent starts to unravel.

"Pleasant Plains had us down by 18 last year. When we started to come back, the fans got crazy. It ones one of the games where I think the crowd lifted us," Niebrugge said. "I know from a look in a kid's eyes of the intensity. We played a lot of better games on our home floor."

Ludwig lives in Florida now, and won't be able to make it back for the reunion, but he won't soon forget his high-school memories.

"It's just a great group of people. I was fortunate to be a part of it all," Ludwig said.

Fifty-four years of St. Anthony basketball history ends at Goff Gym on Friday, but the last chapter won't be written without a flourish.

Todd Engle can be reached at tengle@herald-review.com or 421-7970.