Lincoln Park Stadium
Driving directions and map to Lincoln Park Stadium
Pacific
University's soccer, women's lacrosse and track and field programs are
privledged to call home one of the top outdoor small college athletic facilities
in the United States.
Lincoln Park Stadium was completed in September 2007 and soon after hosted it's first sporting events, a soccer doubleheader against Pacific Lutheran on Sept. 22. The stadium is a component of the $11 million Lincoln Park Athletic Complex, a series of three first-class athletic facilities developed in a unique partnership between Pacific University and the City of Forest Grove.
For
soccer and lacrosse players, the crown jewel of the facility is the synthetic
surfaced playing field. The FieldTurf surface features the top technology
available for an artifical field and is one of only two such surfaces for
used for soccer in the Northwest Conference. The stadium is lit with four
large light towers, allowing for evening practices and matches.
A true state-of-the-art surface, FieldTurf provides the look and feel of grass without the mud, water or daily maintenance of natural turf. The FieldTurf pitch brings Lincoln Park Stadium on-line with many other top-ranked athletic facilities that use the surface, including Portland's PGE Park, Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Reser Stadium in Corvallis and over half of the stadiums in the NFL, including Qwest Field in Seattle. FieldTurf is also used by teams in the English and Scottish premier leagues.
When training for matches that will take place on natural grass, teams will make use of a regulation size practice field located just north of the stadium. The field doubles as the throwing venue for track meets, including the javelin, discus and hammer.
Surrounding the field is a long-awaited track, the first on the Pacific campus since the late 1960s. The 400-meter oval is one of just two of nine-lane facilities in the Northwest, making it capable of hosting large invitationals and NCAA championship events.
The stadium is one of the most spectator-friendly facilities around for track meets. All events, including each of the four throwing disciplines, can be viewed from the stadium seating area. The stadium’s long jump pits are uniquely located between the straightaway and the stadium seating area, providing unprecedented access tthe horizontal jumps.
Pacific hosted its first track meet on the new oval on Mar. 7, 2008, hosting George Fox, Lewis & Clark and Linfield in a conference four-way meet. It was the first meet on campus since the 1960s and the first meet Pacific has hosted since presenting the 1998 NWC Championships in McMinnville.
The Pacific Twilight, held in early May, brought 350 athletes to Forest Grove for an exciting afternoon of track action that featured two Division I teams and many fast times. In just two meets, the Lincoln Park oval has developed reputation for being one of the fastest ovals outside of hallowed Hayward Field.
The Lincoln Park Stadium grandstand rivals small college facilities nationwide in terms of comfort and aesthetics. The grandstand seats 1,100 fans with excellent sight lines to view soccer, lacrosse and track events. The seats are situated to give fans a view of the entire complex, making it possible to watch track or lacrosse, baseball and softball all from one spot.
The stadium’s brick facade is unique among local small college programs and is a radical departure from the portable bleachers of the teams' former home at Tom Reynolds Field. The brick used in the stadium is the same being used in other University building projects, including the library and Bergland Hall, providing a sense of continuity between the school’s academic and athletic programs.
The stadium press box is equipped to provide support for the largest events. The main press tribune seats 20 reporters and operational staff comfortably and also features a large work area. Four additional compartments are available for radio broadcasts, officials and VIP functions. The press box is fully equipped with hard wired Internet access, allowing reporters to file stories from the facility.
In addition to Pacific University athletic events, Lincoln Park Stadium hosts a number of special events, including a Portland Timbers exhibition soccer match in March 2008.