Skip to Content, Navigation, or Footer.
Support the IDS in College Media Madness! Donate here March 24 - April 8.
Thursday, March 28
The Indiana Daily Student

sports field hockey

New wet-turf field, locker room to boost emerging field hockey team

In 2000, the field hockey team began its varsity program with a new coach, a team of inexperienced athletes and a practice football field serving as its home turf.

Now, in 2009, the team has a 2-0 record, an upset against then top-15 ranked American University, a state-of-the-art field and a new facility that houses its locker room and more.

The facility is brand new. The paint smells fresh and the team’s TV to watch previous game footage hasn’t even been set up yet.

“The best part about the new facility are the locker rooms because its just for field hockey,” junior forward Haley Funk said.

From 2000-06, the field hockey team played at the John Mellencamp Pavilion – the football team’s indoor practice field – and shared a locker room with the track and field squad.

The indoor turf at the pavilion was actually too fast for IU’s opponents, who were not used to the speed, so the Hoosiers had a real home-field advantage.

“The indoor turf was much faster than most fields the opponents had ever seen,” senior back Lucy Ireland said.   

In summer 2007, IU constructed a wet turf surface that allows water cannons to soak the field, so the ball can move faster than on dry turf, which most teams use.

IU field hockey coach Amy Robertson said sources from outside IU athletics contributed to the new building.

“The school is using its money from outside investors to make state-of-the-art facilities designed for us,” Robertson said.  

In less than 30 minutes, the entire field can be watered and ready to play on.

During July and August, IU built the new field hockey structure.
In addition to locker room space, it also has a meeting room for the staff and storage for equipment.

The field hockey structure also boosts team camaraderie.

“It helps us bond better because we have locker room to say we are proud of,” Funk said.

The weight room in the North End Zone of Memorial Stadium has also been beneficial to the field hockey team. Field hockey athletes are using the 25,0000-square-foot weight room to their advantage during the offseason and regular season.

Building brand new facilities in many of IU sports will help with recruiting and other key factors to its programs.

Bringing in the best athletes is usually a key factor to help a team succeed in any college sport.

“I think we will be a lot more competitive for recruiting because of the facilities,” Ireland said.

IU field hockey is growing in many areas from the construction of a wet turf field to a building dedicated to the Hoosiers.

The Hoosiers will break in the new field Sept. 19 at 1 p.m. against Ball State.

Get stories like this in your inbox
Subscribe