Walston-Hoover Stadium

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Walston–Hoover Stadium
Walston-Hoover Stadium.jpg
Walston-Hoover stadium during the NCAA DIII football semifinals in December of 2023
Walston-Hoover Stadium
Location Waverly, IA
Coordinates 42°43′47″N92°29′04″W / 42.7296°N 92.4844°W / 42.7296; -92.4844
Owner Wartburg College
Capacity 5,000
Record attendance6,500 [1]
Surface FieldTurf (2001–present)
Construction
OpenedSeptember 1, 2001
Construction cost3.7 Million
Tenants
Wartburg Knights football (NCAA)
(2001–present)
Wartburg Knights track and field (NCAA)
(2001–present)
Website
go-knights.net/facilities/walston-hoover-stadium/3

Walston–Hoover Stadium, formerly Schield Stadium, is a stadium in Waverly, Iowa. It is primarily used for American football, and track and field and has a seating capacity of 5,000. The stadium has hosted two NCAA track and field National Championships and multiple NCAA DIII football playoff games, including an NCAA Semifinal in 2023, telecast on ESPN. [2] [3]

Contents

History

Wartburg College broke ground on a new football stadium and track and field facility for the 2001 academic year. Formerly Schield stadium, the new facility was named Walston-Hoover Stadium, named after longtime residents and supporters of the Knights. [4] The new stadium saw upgrades in home and visitor bleachers, lighting, scoreboard, field turf and all-weather track. The new track allowed Wartburg to now host outdoor track and field meets, something they could not do prior to the renovation due to their old cinder track.

On September 1, 2001, the stadium opened for the first time to the public with a football game against Wisconsin-Oshkosh. The game would be the first night game hosted by Wartburg in school history, the Knights came away with a 31–10 victory. [5]

The stadium attendance record was set on Saturday October 20, 2007 in a football game against Coe College. The homecoming game was a standing room only crowd of 6,500, which saw a 27-3 Wartburg win. [6]

Events

Walston-Hoover has been the host to two NCAA Division III men's and women's outdoor track and field championships. The first was hosted in 2005, where the host Wartburg Knights women's track and field team would come away with their first NCAA outdoor championship. [7] Lincoln University would win their 7th NCAA title on the men's side. [8] In 2016 the stadium would host for a second time. Wisconsin–La Crosse Eagles would go on to win the men's title for the 14th time, while Illinois Wesleyan would come away with their 3rd outdoor title. [9] [10]

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The 2021 Wartburg Knights football team represented Wartburg College as a member of the American Rivers Conference (ARC) during the 2021 NCAA Division III football season. Led by first-year head coach Chris Winter, the Knights opened the season and Winters tenure with a win. They would open conference play with a win over Coe but would finish the season with an overall record of 7–3 and a mark of 6–2 in the ARC, placing second. The team played home games at Walston-Hoover Stadium in Waverly, Iowa.

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The 2018 Wartburg Knights football team represented Wartburg College as a member of the American Rivers Conference (ARC) during the 2018 NCAA Division III football season. Led by Rick Willis in his 20th season as head, the Knights compiled an overall record of 8–3 with a mark of 7–1 in conference play, winning ARC title for the second year in a row and earning an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Football Championship playoffs. This was the 16th conference title for Wartburg and 10th for head coach Rick Willis. Wartburg lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Bethel Royals. The team played home games at Walston-Hoover Stadium in Waverly, Iowa.

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The 2017 Wartburg Knights football team represented Wartburg College as a member of the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) during the 2017 NCAA Division III football season. Led by Rick Willis in his 19th season as head coach, the Knights compiled an overall record of 12–1 with a mark of 8–0 in conference play, winning IIAC title for the first time since 2014 and earning an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Football Championship playoffs. Wartburg lost in the quarterfinal round of the playoffs to the Wisconsin–Oshkosh. The team played home games at Walston-Hoover Stadium in Waverly, Iowa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014 Wartburg Knights football team</span> American college football season

The 2014 Wartburg Knights football team represented Wartburg College as a member of the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) during the 2014 NCAA Division III football season. Led by Rick Willis in his 16th season as head coach, the Knights compiled an overall record of 12–1 with a mark of 8–0 in conference play, winning IIAC title for the second year in a row and earning an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Football Championship playoffs. Wartburg lost in the quarterfinal round of the playoffs to eventual national champion Wisconsin–Whitewater. The Knights held a 17-point lead early in the fourth quarter, but lost 37–33. The team played home games at Walston-Hoover Stadium in Waverly, Iowa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Wartburg Knights football team</span> American college football season

The 2015 Wartburg Knights football team represented Wartburg College as a member of the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) during the 2015 NCAA Division III football season. Led by Rick Willis in his 17th season as head coach, the Knights compiled an overall record of 9–1 with a mark of 6–1 in conference play, finishing second and missing a chance at a third straight bid to the NCAA Division III Football Championship playoffs. The team played home games at Walston-Hoover Stadium in Waverly, Iowa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Wartburg Knights football team</span> American college football season

The 2016 Wartburg Knights football team represented Wartburg College as a member of the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) during the 2016 NCAA Division III football season. Led by Rick Willis in his 18th season as head coach, the Knights compiled an overall record of 6–4 with a mark of 5–3 in conference play, placing fourth in the IIAC. The team played home games at Walston-Hoover Stadium in Waverly, Iowa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2013 Wartburg Knights football team</span> American college football season

The 2013 Wartburg Knights football team represented Wartburg College as a member of the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) during the 2013 NCAA Division III football season. Led by Rick Willis in his 15th season as head coach, the Knights compiled an overall record of 9–3 with a mark of 6–1 in conference play, winning the IIAC for the 13th time and first since 2010. The win title earned them an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Football Championship playoffs. Wartburg lost in the second round of the playoffs to Bethel (MN). The team played home games at Walston-Hoover Stadium in Waverly, Iowa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2012 Wartburg Knights football team</span> American college football season

The 2012 Wartburg Knights football team represented Wartburg College as a member of the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) during the 2012 NCAA Division III football season. Led by Rick Willis in his 14th season as head coach, the Knights compiled an overall record of 6–4 with a mark of 4–3 in conference play. Wartburg finished tied for second in the conference standings. The team played home games at Walston-Hoover Stadium in Waverly, Iowa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2011 Wartburg Knights football team</span> American college football season

The 2011 Wartburg Knights football team represented Wartburg College as a member of the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) during the 2011 NCAA Division III football season. Led by Rick Willis in his 13th season as head coach, the Knights compiled an overall record of 8–2 with a mark of 6–2 in conference play, finishing second in the IIAC. Wartburg was unable to defend their conference title and missed a return trip to the NCAA Division III Football Championship playoffs. The team played home games at Walston-Hoover Stadium in Waverly, Iowa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2010 Wartburg Knights football team</span> American college football season

The 2010 Wartburg Knights football team represented Wartburg College as a member of the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) during the 2010 NCAA Division III football season. Led by Rick Willis in his 12th season as head coach, the Knights began the season with high hopes to return to the top of the conference with a veteran team. The Knights compiled an overall record of 10–1 with a mark of 8–0 in conference play, finishing atop the IIAC for the 12th time and completing their first undefeated regular season since 2003. They earned the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Football Championship playoffs, losing at home to the eventual national semifinalist Bethel Royal in the first round. During the season head coach Rick Willis earned his 100th career coaching victory with a win against Buena Vista. The team played home games at Walston-Hoover Stadium in Waverly, Iowa.

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The Wartburg Knights women's volleyball team represents Wartburg College and competes in the American Rivers Conference of NCAA Division III. The team is coached by co-head coaches Jen Walker in her 25th year and Doug Frazell in his 10th. The Knights play their home matches in Levick Arena along with wrestling and the mens and women's basketball teams.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2023 Wartburg Knights football team</span> American college football season

The 2023 Wartburg Knights football team represents the Wartburg College as a member of the American Rivers Conference (ARC) during the 2023 NCAA Division III football season. The Knights, led by third-year head coach Chris Winter, play home games at Walston-Hoover Stadium in Waverly, Iowa. The Knights clinched their 19th conference championship on October 28, 2023, with a win over Central College and then capped of the regular season 10–0 following a win at Nebraska Wesleyan. Wartburg ended the season in the national semifinals for the second straight year, losing to North Central 34–27.

References

  1. Kuhens, KatieJo. "Strong Second Half Propels #6 Wartburg Past Central". go-knights.net. Wartburg Athletics. Retrieved 16 January 2024.
  2. Nelson, Jim (December 5, 2023). "College Football: Wartburg College embracing spotlight of Division III semifinal appearance". Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  3. "Division III men's track and field: Wisconsin-La Crosse wins a record 14th outdoor title". ncaa.com. NCAA.com. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  4. Hylton, Sean (July 12, 2001). "Wartburg names new stadium". Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  5. Budlong, Jeff (September 3, 2001). "Knights savor opening night". Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  6. Cross, Matt (October 21, 2007). "Wartburg's Suckow torches former team". Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier. Retrieved 16 January 2024.
  7. Nelson, Jim (May 29, 2005). "Wartburg women surge to national title in final event". Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  8. "Division III Men's Outdoor Track and Field Championship Results 2000". NCAA. raceberryjam. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
  9. Tribune Staff (May 26, 2016). "Eagles clinch 2nd straight national title, 14th overall". La Crosse Tribune. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  10. "Illinois Wesleyan claims third national outdoor title". ncaa.com. NCAA.com. Retrieved 13 January 2024.