Orono, Maine — The University of Maine officially unveiled its new field hockey complex at a grand opening ceremony on Aug. 18.
“We take great pride in the Black Bear field hockey team,” president of the University of Maine Joan Ferrini-Mundy says. ” Going forward, this new facility will stand as a testament to the talented student-athletes, coaches and staff who have contributed to this conference dominating program. We invite fans of all ages to come out and cheer on our team!”
“We are grateful for the generous support of the Harold Alfond Foundation,” adds Ferrini-Mundy . “This new state-of-the-art field hockey facility, a UMS TRANSFORMS initiative, was made possible thanks to their philanthropy.”
The 70,000-square-foot, $8.3 million complex features a synthetic turf playing surface, bleacher seating for up to 512 patrons along with chairback seats in the center of the stadium layout, an enclosed , three-level press box at midfield with the third-level featuring a covered canopy for film, LED stadium lights, brick dugouts, two new scoreboards, and UMaine branding surrounding the stadium. Spideo cameras will also be installed in three locations to allow for video replay.
“To open one top-tier Division I facility in any given year is special,” UMaine Director of Athletics Jude Killy says. “The opportunity to do it a second time, less than six months after opening our softball complex, is remarkable. Today is a great day for our championship caliber field hockey team. Tomorrow, and in the years to come, will be great for this program, our University, this region, and the State of Maine. To all levels of field hockey throughout our state; our new home is your new home. Thank you to the Harold Alfond Foundation for their continued and tremendous support in making all of this possible.”
The project was made possible by the transformational $240 million commitment the Harold Alfond Foundation made to the University of Maine System, including a $90 million investment in UMaine athletics to fund the Athletics Facilities Master Plan under the UMS TRANSFORMS initiative. The Harold Alfond Foundation grant to UMS and the people and students of Maine was the eighth largest grant in the history of American public higher education when it was awarded in fall 2020.
“Through the generosity of the Harold Alfond Foundation, we’ve created a field hockey complex where athletes of all ages will share countless stories of growth, resilience, and triumph,” President/CEO of the University of Maine Foundation Jeff Mills says. “Let this complex be a reminder that philanthropy is a bridge that connects dreams to realities.”
WBRC Inc. (Bangor, Maine), Crawford Architects (Kansas City, Missouri), and Activias Inc. (Dedham, Massachusetts) served as the architects for the UMaine Softball Complex. Sargent Corporation (Stillwater, Maine) with subcontractors, spanning from Caribou, Maine to Graham, Texas, began construction of the facility in spring 2023.
The complex will be the home to the University of Maine field hockey program. It also will provide a valuable venue for area youth and high school teams, along with the ability to host state, conference and regional championship events.
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