Morrone Stadium

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Morrone Stadium
Morrone Stadium Outside.jpg
A view of the outside of Morrone Stadium. Also visible in the corner is the visitor's bullpen at J.O. Christian Field
Morrone Stadium
Full nameJoseph J. Morrone Stadium
Location Storrs, Connecticut Flag of the United States.svg  United States
Coordinates 41°48′4″N72°15′18″W / 41.80111°N 72.25500°W / 41.80111; -72.25500 Coordinates: 41°48′4″N72°15′18″W / 41.80111°N 72.25500°W / 41.80111; -72.25500
Owner University of Connecticut
Operator University of Connecticut department of athletics
Capacity 5,100
Record attendance5,495 on December 8, 2007 vs. Virginia Tech (post-2002 contraction)
9,200 on October 24, 1982 vs. Alabama A&M (all-time), [1]
6,090 on September 26, 1999 vs. Syracuse (women's all-time)
2,308 vs. Notre Dame on October 13, 2006 (women's post-contraction) [2]
Field size75 x 120 yards
Surfacenatural grass
Scoreboardone electronic scoreboard
Construction
Built1969 [3]
Opened1969
Renovated1994, 2002, 2008, 2009
Tenants
Connecticut Huskies men's soccer
Connecticut Huskies women's soccer
Connecticut Huskies women's lacrosse (former, part-time)

Morrone Stadium, officially known as Ray Reid Field at Joseph J. Morrone Stadium [4] is the on-campus soccer stadium at University of Connecticut in Storrs, Connecticut.

Contents

The 5,100-seat stadium was built in 1969. and has undergone many renovations since. The stadium hosts the school's men's and women's soccer programs.

History

Morrone Stadium was built in 1969, and was at the time known as Connecticut Soccer Stadium. Before that, UConn soccer was largely unknown and unpopular. However, at the urging of newly hired soccer and lacrosse coach Joe Morrone (whose name the stadium now bears), a new stadium was built for the team. [5] The stadium has had a capacity as high as 8,574 but it was restructured in 1994 and again in 2002 to seat 5,564. In 2008, it was again restructured to seat 4,407. In 2009, Morrone Stadium was expanded slightly to 4,500. [6] As of the 2015 season the current capacity is 5,100. [7] In 1997, the board of trustees voted to change the name of the stadium to honor Morrone, who had just retired after coaching soccer for 28 years at UConn. The stadium was officially renamed in 1999 to Joseph J. Morrone Stadium. [8] In 2008, the Division of Athletics proposed to build a new basketball practice facility on the site of Morrone, [9] but that was later changed and it will now be built where the vacant Memorial Stadium now is. [10]

Morrone Stadium was the original home of the women's lacrosse team as well, when it was founded in 1997. However, the team began to play some, and eventually all, of its games at the Sherman Family-Sports Complex. The last lacrosse game at Morrone was in 2009 against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, which was the first time the team played there in three years. [11]

Description

The listed capacity of Morrone Stadium is 5,100. There is one electronic scoreboard behind the south goal, which is capability of displaying the time, score and shots for both teams, as well as limited messages. The natural grass surface measures 120 x 75 yards. Long metal bleachers line both sides of the field, and there is also a small set of bleachers behind the south goal. There is also unofficially standing room behind the north goal, although this is typically only used by students in the "Goal Patrol", UConn soccer's student supporters group. The Goal Patrol is known for being one of the nation's loudest and most passionate student sections, and, as of 2007, was also the largest with 540 members. [12] Thanks in large part to these loyal fans, Soccer America Magazine voted Morrone Stadium the fifth-best atmosphere among all college soccer stadiums in the country in 2011. [13] Large crowds continue to attend UConn men's and women's games there, making it one of the toughest places for visiting teams to play.

Location

Like many of the University of Connecticut Athletic Facilities, Morrone Stadium is located on Stadium Road, right next to Mark Edward Freitas Ice Forum, which is home to the women's ice hockey team. It is also across the street from J.O. Christian Field, home of the baseball team. The softball field is nearby, as is the Werth Family UConn Basketball Champions Center and the Sherman Family Sports Complex. Gampel Pavilion, home to the men's and women's basketball teams and the women's volleyball team is located around the corner as well.

Men's soccer sellouts

Note: Attendance goes back to the 2007 Season. * designates an NCAA Division I men's soccer tournament game.

DateOpponentResultAttendance
September 24, 2011 St. John's W 2-05,100
October 22, 2011 Georgetown T 0-05,100
* December 4, 2011 Charlotte L 1-15,100
August 8, 2012 St. Francis W 1-05,100
September 22, 2012 St. John's W 3-05,100
September 29, 2012 Notre Dame W 2-15,100
October 27, 2012 Providence W 2-05,100
* December 2, 2012 Creighton L 0-15,100
August 31, 2015 Quinnipiac T 0-05,100
October 17, 2015 UCF W 2-15,100
August 28, 2016 Omaha W 2-05,100
October 15, 2016 South Florida L 0-15,100
August 22, 2022 Holy Cross W 2-15,212

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New Stadium

On October 13, 2014 it was announced the former UConn men’s soccer student-athlete Tony Rizza ’87 (BUS) has pledged a total of $8 million to transform the soccer complex and build a new soccer stadium on the Storrs campus. [14] The new facility will be built on the site of the current Joseph J. Morrone Stadium and will bear the same name. In February 2017, UConn announced a proposed plan for a new stadium with the potential to break ground in the spring of 2018. [15]

Notable events and Games

On September 26, 1999 6,070 fans attended the women's soccer game against the Syracuse Orangemen. At the time, this was a record for attendance at a regular season women's college soccer game. Additionally, Morrone Stadium has hosted various soccer tournaments. On November 11 and 13, 2005, Morrone Stadium hosted the 2005 Big East Soccer Tournament semifinals and finals. The regular-season co-champion Huskies defeated the South Florida Bulls 1-0. [16] It also hosted the semifinals and final of the 2006 Big East Women's Tournament, [17] the 2007 Big East Men'sTournament, [18] and the 2009 Women's Big East Tournament. [19] On February 9, 2011, the Big East Conference announced Morrone Stadium would again host the final two rounds of the Women's conference tournament in 2012, its first tournament in three years. [20] However, as a result of logistical issues related to postponements caused by Hurricane Sandy, the tournament was moved to Rentschler Field in East Hartford. [21] The stadium would later host the semifinals and final of the 2014 American Athletic Conference men's soccer tournament, where the Tulsa Golden Hurricane defeated USF 6-5 on penalty kicks after a scoreless draw. [22] Morrone has also hosted several games of the opening rounds of the Big East, American Athletic Conference, and NCAA Tournaments for both sexes, although those are typically played at the site of the higher seed.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Connecticut</span> Public university in Storrs, Connecticut, U.S.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">J. O. Christian Field</span> Former baseball stadium in Storrs, Connecticut

J. O. Christian Field was a baseball stadium in Storrs, Connecticut, United States. It was the home field of the Connecticut Huskies baseball team of the NCAA Division I's American Athletic Conference from 1968 through 2019. The stadium held seating for 2,000 people. It was named after former UConn baseball coach and athletic director, J. Orlean Christian. UConn played their last game at J.O. Christian field on May 11, 2019, with demolition the following month.

The UConn Huskies football team is a college football team that represents the University of Connecticut in the sport of American football. The team competes in NCAA Division I FBS as an Independent. Connecticut first fielded a team in 1896, and participated in Division I-AA until 1999. The Huskies began their two-year Division I-A transition period in 2000, and became a full-fledged Division I-A team in 2002. From 2000 to 2003 the team played as an independent. The school's football team then joined the conference of its other sport teams, the Big East, taking effect in 2004, through 2019. In 2019, the UConn football team left the American to again play as an independent, as the school's current primary conference, the current Big East, does not sponsor the sport. The Huskies are coached by Jim Mora.

The UConn Huskies men's basketball program is the intercollegiate men's basketball team of the University of Connecticut, in Storrs, Connecticut. They currently play in the Big East Conference and are coached by Dan Hurley.

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The 2003–04 Connecticut Huskies women's basketball team represented the University of Connecticut in the 2003–2004 NCAA Division I basketball season. Coached by Geno Auriemma, the Huskies played their home games at the Hartford Civic Center in Hartford, Connecticut, and on campus at the Harry A. Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, Connecticut, and are a member of the Big East Conference. The Huskies won their fifth NCAA championship, and third consecutive, by defeating the Tennessee Lady Vols, 70–61.

The 2002–03 Connecticut Huskies women's basketball team represented the University of Connecticut in the 2002–2003 NCAA Division I basketball season. Coached by Geno Auriemma, the Huskies played their home games at the Hartford Civic Center in Hartford, Connecticut, and on campus at the Harry A. Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, Connecticut, and are a member of the Big East Conference. The only loss the Huskies suffered all year was to Villanova in the championship game of the Big East women's basketball tournament. Villanova beat the Huskies by a score of 52–48. The Huskies won their fourth NCAA championship by defeating the Tennessee Volunteers, 73–68.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Huskies of Honor</span> Award given by the University of Connecticut

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Big East Conference</span> U.S. college athletic conference that began in 2013

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Raymond Michael "Ray" Reid is a retired American college soccer coach. He was head coach at the University of Connecticut Huskies men's soccer team for 24 years. He has led UConn to one NCAA Division I national championship, eight Big East regular season championships and four Big East tournament championships. Before coming to UConn, he was the head coach at Southern Connecticut State University, leading the team to three NCAA Division II national championships in eight seasons. Reid leads all coaches in the nation in winning percentage (.769) and has won four NSCAA Coach of the Year awards.

Burrill Family Field at Connecticut Softball Stadium is the home field of the Connecticut Huskies softball team of the University of Connecticut. The stadium was located along Jim Calhoun Way, on the university's Storrs, Connecticut campus, adjacent to J. O. Christian Field and across from Morrone Stadium and the Burton Family Football Complex. The field is named for the Burrill Family, five of whom are UConn alums.

The 2019 UConn Huskies football team represented the University of Connecticut (UConn) during the 2019 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Huskies were led by head coach Randy Edsall, who was in the third year of his second stint as head coach at the school. The team played their home games at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, Connecticut, and competed as members of the East Division of the American Athletic Conference. They finished the season 2–10, 0–8 in AAC play to finish in last place in the East Division. The 2019 season was the Huskies' last as members of the American Athletic Conference.

The 2021 UConn Huskies football team represented the University of Connecticut (UConn) in the 2021 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Huskies competed as an independent, having left the American Athletic Conference following the 2019 season. They played their home games at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, Connecticut.

References

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  2. Women's Soccer Media Guide 2011, retrieved August 19, 2011
  3. If You Build it, They Will Come - Daily Campus, September 30, 2008. Accessed August 25, 2011 Archived September 29, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  4. "UConn Facilities - University of Connecticut Official Athletic Site". Archived from the original on 2010-08-12. Retrieved 2010-12-03.
  5. If You Build it, They Will Come - Daily Campus, September 30, 2008. Accessed August 25, 2011 Archived September 29, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  6. UConn Huskies 2010 Media Guide for Men's Soccer, access May 22 2011
  7. http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/conn/sports/m-soccer/auto_pdf/2015-16/misc_non_event/Quick.pdf [ bare URL PDF ]
  8. ":: Walt Chyzowych Memorial Fund ::". Archived from the original on 2011-07-19. Retrieved 2010-12-03.
  9. Hartford Courant - Practice Facility Update Archived 2012-07-11 at archive.today
  10. Hartford Courant - More Incremental Progress on UConn Facility Archived 2012-07-12 at archive.today
  11. UConn Huskies 2009 Women's Lacrosse Media Guide
  12. Deamon Deacons on A Mission (Section "Huskies Rising")
  13. Twelve of the Most Exciting Places to Watch a College Soccer Match, CollegeSoccerNews.com
  14. "UConn Alum Pledges Total of $8 Million for Soccer Complex". 13 October 2014.
  15. "With Feasibility Study And Ticket Surcharge, UConn Moving Forward On Plans For New Stadiums - Hartford Courant". Courant.com. 2017-02-10. Retrieved 2017-05-06.
  16. "2005 Men's Soccer Schedule" UConnHuskies.com, accessed May 13, 2011
  17. "Big East Championship Schedule 2006-07 BigEast.org, accessed May 13, 2011
  18. "Big East Championship Schedule 2007-08 BigEast.org, accessed May 13, 2011
  19. "Big East Championship Schedule 2009-10 BigEast.org, accessed May 13, 2011
  20. "Big East Announces Olympic Sport Championship Sites for 2011-12 and 2012-13 BigEast.org, February 9, 2011, accessed May 13, 2011
  21. "BIG EAST Women's Soccer Championship Moves to Rentschler Field".
  22. "2014 MEN'S SOCCER CHAMPIONSHIP - TheAmerican.org".