On September 5, 1995, Virginia hosted Davidson College for the inaugural contest of the University Turf field, downing the Wildcats, 5-0. Since that day, the Turf field has been the home of the Virginia field hockey team.
The Turf field is located next to Onesty and University Halls, in the heart of the University sports complex. While field hockey has used the field the most, both men's and women's lacrosse have used the turf, having hosted ACC and NCAA competitions.
In 1998, the women's lacrosse team won the ACC Championship on the field and hosted a NCAA quarterfinal match there later that year.
"We compete there in inter-collegiate field hockey and sometimes with the two lacrosse teams," said Jason Bauman, associate athletic director for facilities and operations. "We play a lot of scrimmages there for lacrosse in February," he added.
Playing on turf makes any sport a different challenge, as competitors must adjust to the different style of play.
"As opposed to grass, it's a lot faster," senior forward Katie Slocum said. "It heightens the level of play."
As most teams will tell you, playing on a home field is an advantage in itself. In Division I field hockey, however, this is not always the case.
"Most Division I teams have turf," Slocum said. "So there's no real advantage."
Yet the record for Virginia seems to suggest otherwise. Coach Jessica Wilk has had tremendous success at the Turf field. Only in her second year at Virginia, Wilk has garnered a substantial list of accomplishments. She has led the Cavaliers to the NCAA tournament, keeping her squad consistently ranked in the nation's top rankings. The Turf field is an advantage for the Cavaliers in that they practice and play on the same field.
"We're used to playing on it all the time, so that might be an advantage for us," Slocum said.
The location of the Turf field is ideal for any Virginia team, but location does not always translate to having a large fan base cheering on the squad.
"The sport isn't that popular or well known; it's not so much the location," Slocum said. "So we never get a lacrosse [size] turnout."
Virginia's best season on the turf came during the 1997-1998 season where the Cavaliers went 21-2 at home. In NCAA competition, Virginia is 4-0 on the Turf field with one field hockey win over Penn State and three other lacrosse victories. Field hockey is currently 62-16 on the turf since it's opening in 1995.
The Turf Field is part of the ongoing upgrades to the facilities at the University and hopefully will become more spectator-friendly in the near future.
"We do want to create a longer term look for the turf field," Bauman said. The University hopes to "enclose an area up top for media and event operations and add permanent restrooms and concessions."
These upgrades also are targeted to help both the field hockey and lacrosse teams on the field.
"This summer we are planning to replace the playing surface," Bauman said. "It's going to be very similar [to what is currently being used] because that's what field hockey needs to compete on the championship level."
Field hockey will have to wait until next semester to start practicing on its newly refinished surface. The Turf will remain the home of field hockey for years to come as improvements occur, hopefully helping to continue the Cavaliers' success.
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