Lacrosse at Highmark Stadium

[PittSquared]

Yesterday Pitt women's lacrosse announced a multi-year deal to play at Highmark Stadium (the Riverhounds venue). A lacrosse field is included in Victory Heights at the OC Lot location. So, for those of you more knowledgeable than I:

1. Was it always the plan for lacrosse to play in a temporary home?
2. Has Victory Heights been delayed/scaled back?
3. For the conspiracy theorists in the house, is Pitt looking at a more ambitious use for the OC Lot location?

Highmark Stadium is a great venue that's already built, so I think the deal makes abundant sense. Just wondering if it signals anything larger.

 

[pittchagg]

The plan was to have lacrosse play at the soccer stadium until their new stadium was built, but we had heard that the soccer programs might not have been too thrilled about the prospect of sharing their already-limited practice and game space with a third program. Then, the pandemic hit, and the timeline for each aspect of Victory Heights was pushed back by about a year, with the lacrosse stadium always being the last one on the list for completion.

I suspect that the combination of Vidovich/Waldrum getting their way and the pandemic-related delays to the lacrosse stadium led them to go this route. The lacrosse stadium still appears on the Victory Heights plan, but it looks like completion isn’t estimated until at least 2026.

 

[pittdan77]

😐

Can we see some MSPaint renderings?

 

[HailtoPitt]

Why do they need a lacrosse stadium on campus if this option is available?

 

[pittdan77]

Why do they need a lacrosse stadium on campus if this option is available?

Can right-size the stadium without tarps. Obviously.

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

The plan was to have lacrosse play at the soccer stadium until their new stadium was built, but we had heard that the soccer programs might not have been too thrilled about the prospect of sharing their already-limited practice and game space with a third program. Then, the pandemic hit, and the timeline for each aspect of Victory Heights was pushed back by about a year, with the lacrosse stadium always being the last one on the list for completion.

I suspect that the combination of Vidovich/Waldrum getting their way and the pandemic-related delays to the lacrosse stadium led them to go this route. The lacrosse stadium still appears on the Victory Heights plan, but it looks like completion isn’t estimated until at least 2026.

I think this is correct although Waldrum and Vidovich were here when lacrosse was formed so you'd think they would have been in on those discussions. It seems a little absurd that Pitt soccer, which is out of season, won't let Pitt lacrosse use their stadium but the Riverhounds, which are in season, will. Granted, the Riverhounds pimp out their stadium for anything since they're a failing franchise losing money hand over fist

 

[Zeldas Open Roof]

Why do they need a lacrosse stadium on campus if this option is available?

Great question. That’s a cool venue and more then adequate enough for games. If it’s good enough for women’s lingerie football, it’s good enough for Pitt lax

 

[pittdan77]

Great question. That’s a cool venue and more then adequate enough for games. If it’s good enough for women’s lingerie football, it’s good enough for Pitt lax

I actually think it has to do with the quality of the turf. Keeping it smooth is apparently something of a big deal.

 

[Zeldas Open Roof]

I actually think it has to do with the quality of the turf. Keeping it smooth is apparently something of a big deal.

A few years back Mark madden got into it with the women’s football team (non lingerie league) about them playing there. He wrote article about how it should be a soccer only venue and the female players all blasted him on social media.

Believe it or not, he was the one who handled it professionally and the girls came off looking pretty bad.

 

[pittdan77]

A few years back Mark madden got into it with the women’s football team (non lingerie league) about them playing there. He wrote article about how it should be a soccer only venue and the female players all blasted him on social media.

Believe it or not, he was the one who handled it professionally and the girls came off looking pretty bad.

I actually know one of the women that played on that team. Very passionate people. I don't recall the story but I did see one of their games when they played in Altoona.

 

[TFBaum]

Why do they need a lacrosse stadium on campus if this option is available?

Lacrosse is a grass field sport.

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

Lacrosse is a grass field sport.

But Highmark Stadium isn't a grass field either.

 

[HailtoPitt]

Pitt should just dump lacrosse and bring back tennis, which would require less space.

 

[bwh05]

Why do they need a lacrosse stadium on campus if this option is available?

Because we pay a LOT to rent Highmark.

 

[bwh05]

Pitt should just dump lacrosse and bring back tennis, which would require less space.

tennis cost a lot more because we had to rent practice space. Lax will practice in the bubble & is much more beneficial for Title IX

 

[HailtoPitt]

Because we pay a LOT to rent Highmark.

How much?

 

[HailtoPitt]

tennis cost a lot more because we had to rent practice space. Lax will practice in the bubble & is much more beneficial for Title IX

I get that LAX has more players, but I'm not sure how tennis requires more space?

 

[pittchagg]

I get that LAX has more players, but I'm not sure how tennis requires more space?

With tennis we had to rent game space and practice space. With lacrosse we can handle practice space, and just have to rent game space. I’m sure renting practice space 6 days a week and transportation to Wexford for most of the year adds up.

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

A few years back Mark madden got into it with the women’s football team (non lingerie league) about them playing there. He wrote article about how it should be a soccer only venue and the female players all blasted him on social media.

Believe it or not, he was the one who handled it professionally and the girls came off looking pretty bad.

The Riverhounds are so broke, I am sure they would rent you and me that field for like $100/hour if you asked them. I heard they had to up the fees for their "pay for play" youth teams to cover their pro team expenses. And the funny thing is that most of their youth teams arent as good as Beadling, Century, SCS, Hotspurs, etc.

 

[bwh05]

Lacrosse is a grass field sport.

So is soccer but fortunately it doesn’t seem to be hurting us at this point.

 

[pitt90seven]

Why do they need a lacrosse stadium on campus if this option is available?

Great question. That’s a cool venue and more then adequate enough for games. If it’s good enough for women’s lingerie football, it’s good enough for Pitt lax

b/c putting kids in a bus to practice every day is lame. and it's bush league.

 

[Zeldas Open Roof]

b/c putting kids in a bus to practice every day is lame. and it's bush league.

So who wants to tell him how our football players get to the south side For practice and north side for games.

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

Because we pay a LOT to rent Highmark.

I can't imagine that's even remotely close to being true.

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

With tennis we had to rent game space and practice space. With lacrosse we can handle practice space, and just have to rent game space. I’m sure renting practice space 6 days a week and transportation to Wexford for most of the year adds up.

Actually the plan is to both practice and play at Highmark. They are supposed to be renovating a dedicated locker room for the team.

 

[Conemaugh]

Why do they need a lacrosse stadium on campus if this option is available?

No shit. Marino field is looking for absolutely anyone to use it.

 

[HailtoPitt]

So who wants to tell him how our football players get to the south side For practice and north side for games.

Shhhh.

 

[HailToPitt725]

My wild Victory Heights theory pipe-dream:

The original design looked something like this. It had very ambitious plans for the OC Lot. However, they revised the plans a year later and it looked like this. Granted, the proposal in general appears scaled back, but notice how they moved almost everything away from the OC Lot to elsewhere, even incorporating the Petersen Events Center lawn for the new sports performance center. You also can’t justify this by listing the new need for a women’s lacrosse facility since the program was announced in 2018 and the campus master plan was released in 2019.

Perhaps I’ve read too much into this, but we’ve heard for years that the “Pete” green space was a huge asset for the university; it was even part of the pitch for tearing down Pitt Stadium. Now they’re going to abandon it when they could’ve easily housed these new facilities elsewhere? Part of me wants to believe they have different, bigger plans for that space. Who knows, maybe it’s late and I don’t know what I’m talking about…

 

[pitt90seven]

So who wants to tell him how our football players get to the south side For practice and north side for games.

that's not ideal but they have a full facility with the foods, and stillers, etc. the football team isn't ideal - I never said that. and I knew you personally were going to make this dumb counterargument (I love you - don't take offense, but it's dumb).

where do those girls go to practice if they want additional time? there's nowhere. at least the VB girls can practice w/in walking distance in that dump of the FH. (which I have no idea still exists). women's lacrosse is owned by the ACC. if you're gonna compete, you need walkable facilities.

Pitt football on campus facilities is everyone's goal. however, we can have good facilities for other sports despite not having an on campus stadium (which I don't think we'll ever have). (again - don't be pissy - I like you and no one else does

 

[TIGER-PAUL]

Aren't soccer and lacrosse different times of year?
Anyway would seem obvious its a temporary gig of course unless you believe Victory Heights is a red herring...

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

Actually the plan is to both practice and play at Highmark. They are supposed to be renovating a dedicated locker room for the team.

Wow, off-campus lacrosse seems like a huge waste of money. I liked the addition of the women's lacrosse program but I thought they'd play at the soccer stadium.

Honestly, at this point, the lacrosse facility is of more importance than volleyball/wrestling. The FH is old and junky but it works. And those programs are winning.

I's scrap plans for the volleyball arena and build a track/lacrosse stadium first. Or maybe a lacrosse stadium without a track.

 

[infinitehighway42]

Wow, off-campus lacrosse seems like a huge waste of money. I liked the addition of the women's lacrosse program but I thought they'd play at the soccer stadium.

Honestly, at this point, the lacrosse facility is of more importance than volleyball/wrestling. The FH is old and junky but it works. And those programs are winning.

I's scrap plans for the volleyball arena and build a track/lacrosse stadium first. Or maybe a lacrosse stadium without a track.

They're getting a track facility, which will be where the intramural fields and sports bubble are right now behind the Cost Center. It will also house the long-awaited Pitt Band facility, moving them out of the (20+ year) "temporary" band facility in the basement of Trees Hall.

Once the Victory Heights project is completed, these teams will have their own facilities and this Highmark deal will no longer be needed.

 

[chirurgo]

Lacrosse is a grass field sport.

This it is not. I follow D-1 men’s lacrosse and many programs play on artificial surface.

It makes sense for soccer and lacrosse to use separate fields simply because both practice year round. There is a spring program for soccer and a fall program for lacrosse similar to spring football. The Highmark stadium plan is a smart and predictable move given the increased lag time related to victory heights.

As for the other projects on the original plan, I don’t think anything has been scrapped. The LRDC and O’Hara garage are almost demolished for the new student life center which will replace the facility in the Pete. That will likely pave the way for work on the combined wrestling/volleyball/gymnastics facility on the lawn.

The lacrosse field on the OC lot is a latter phase I assume because they haven’t figured out where the replacement parking is going to go. They are supposed to get parking garage partnerships in the periphery of campus and an expanded shuttle system for those who use that lot currently.

The practice bubble and will be an indoor track facility probably shortly thereafter. Looks like the trees renovation might be the only project in limbo.

No way I can see them pivoting to a football stadium on the OC lot. Construction costs are at an all-time high with the pandemic. I would expect cost overruns on the original plan. Furthermore, I wouldn’t anticipate any stadium plans on the lower campus either given the initiatives and investment that the University and Walnut Capital are making for apartment buildings throughout central Oakland.

The only hope for an OCS is for Biden to shut down the VA and sell it to the University. That has about as much a chance as Biden getting younger.

 

[pittchagg]

This it is not. I follow D-1 men’s lacrosse and many programs play on artificial surface.

It makes sense for soccer and lacrosse to use separate fields simply because both practice year round. There is a spring program for soccer and a fall program for lacrosse similar to spring football. The Highmark stadium plan is a smart and predictable move given the increased lag time related to victory heights.

As for the other projects on the original plan, I don’t think anything has been scrapped. The LRDC and O’Hara garage are almost demolished for the new student life center which will replace the facility in the Pete. That will likely pave the way for work on the combined wrestling/volleyball/gymnastics facility on the lawn.

The lacrosse field on the OC lot is a latter phase I assume because they haven’t figured out where the replacement parking is going to go. They are supposed to get parking garage partnerships in the periphery of campus and an expanded shuttle system for those who use that lot currently.

The practice bubble and will be an indoor track facility probably shortly thereafter. Looks like the trees renovation might be the only project in limbo.

No way I can see them pivoting to a football stadium on the OC lot. Construction costs are at an all-time high with the pandemic. I would expect cost overruns on the original plan. Furthermore, I wouldn’t anticipate any stadium plans on the lower campus either given the initiatives and investment that the University and Walnut Capital are making for apartment buildings throughout central Oakland.

The only hope for an OCS is for Biden to shut down the VA and sell it to the University. That has about as much a chance as Biden getting younger.

Current timeline seems to be:

Fall 2022 - arena/sports performance complex groundbreaking
Winter 2022 - indoor track/band complex groundbreaking
Fall 2024 - arena/sports performance complex opens
Spring 2025 - indoor track/band complex opens

The original plan was to have ground broken on both in Spring 2022, but Covid obviously delayed that process. There are other documents that say that they estimate that Fall 2026 will be the student-athlete success center opening (which is where the student gym in the Pete is currently, so it will obviously depend on the fitness center opening on O'Hara before they can start that), and that the lacrosse stadium would open "TBD", which I imagine depends on figuring out the parking situation. I wouldn't be surprised if there are plans to knock down the field house after the new arena opens and build parking there, and then do the lacrosse stadium. It would make a lot of sense.

It's also important to note that the lacrosse stadium is the cheapest aspect of the plan. A few years ago Penn State built a similar-looking lacrosse stadium for about $7M, and I can't imagine that Pitt's would be more extensive: https://gopsusports.com/sports/2018/8/8/facilities-lacrosse-html.aspx

 

[pittdan77]

It's also important to note that the lacrosse stadium is the cheapest aspect of the plan. A few years ago Penn State built a similar-looking lacrosse stadium for about $7M

PSU played on what looked like an IM field with turf prior to that but they also play indoors at the Lasch Building. Have been for years. I know Air Force did that 30 years ago when I played there. Springtime in Colorado can take a while to come around and is very unpredictable.

 

[pitt90seven]

So who wants to tell him how our football players get to the south side For practice and north side for games.

who ever said that's ideal? we've spent the past 20 years bitching that we miss our stadium. so why would we argue it's a good thing for another sport?

 

[pittdan77]

who ever said that's ideal? we've spent the past 20 years bitching that we miss our stadium. so why would we argue it's a good thing for another sport?

Point taken but I would actually argue that the South Side is ideal for practice. It's not exactly that far away and provides a very unique, professional environment for a college football team. Actually believe it teaches our kids how to be pros which is very important.

 

[Zeldas Open Roof]

who ever said that's ideal? we've spent the past 20 years bitching that we miss our stadium. so why would we argue it's a good thing for another sport?

Valid point.

 

[pitt90seven]

Point taken but I would actually argue that the South Side is ideal for practice. It's not exactly that far away and provides a very unique, professional environment for a college football team. Actually believe it teaches our kids how to be pros which is very important.

for sure. there are positives. i'd be interested in what the players would say about it.

 

[pittdan77]

for sure. there are positives. i'd be interested in what the players would say about it.

I would, too. Especially if there were strong feelings about it either way.

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

It makes sense for soccer and lacrosse to use separate fields simply because both practice year round.

Yeah, the people who think that soccer is only played in the fall and lacrosse is only played in the spring really aren't paying much attention. In fact Pitt just announced I believe earlier today their five game fall schedule. The only home game is against Duquesne at Highmark later this month. But they are already practicing now, and they will be playing games until the end of October.

Then in the spring, men's and women's soccer teams start practicing in February (or is it January?) and are allowed to play five games, which are generally in March and April. There is basically an overlap of soccer and lacrosse from the start of the school year all the way through to the end. When one is playing/practicing the other is too.