Field of Dreams : Plan for Prentiss Field renovations finalized

Acacia O'Connor Senior Editor

After years of wishing and hoping, Vassar baseball players will finally be able to hit one out of the park, literally. The $7.5 million plan to reconstruct the baseball, field hockey, soccer and lacrosse pitches at Prentiss Field is gearing up, which is an exciting prospect for the athletic community.

“It’s going to be huge,” said Athletics Director Sharon Beverly.

The plan, which was announced during the Spring 2006 Athletic Banquet by former President Fran Fergusson, was projected to break ground on Nov. 1, but has been pushed back a month. The College is waiting for its building permit to be renewed by the town of Poughkeepsie. According to Beverly, once the permit is renewed, construction should begin by Dec. 1 and will continue (weather permitting) throughout the spring.

The new complex was made possible through donations, principally by one from Sue Gotshal Weinberg ’51, who has served on the College’s Board of Trustees. Weinberg also made a major donation in March 2003 toward the construction of the J.L. Weinberg Sports Pavillion, which houses the locker rooms and the athletic training room at Prentiss Field.

The new Prentiss Field will feature a turf field with an eight-lane track, a second grass field adjacent to it for soccer and lacrosse, a grass field hockey field, a baseball diamond complete with a fence and dugouts, and a practice field. The turf field will have press boxes, and will also be flanked with lights, making it possible for teams to play evening home games, something unprecedented for Vassar’s outdoor sports.

Beverly said the College hopes that the fields will be ready for play by Sept. 1, 2007. “All the spring sports [next semester] will be displaced,” said Beverly. While this will be inconvienent for teams and spectators, Beverly believes the future benefits will make the disruption worthwhile.

This feeling is shared by student-athletes as well. “[Seniors] won’t get to play on the new field,” said men’s lacrosse team member Vito Cataldo ’07. “But it’s going to make the program so much better.” Cataldo added that the turf field would be especially useful during the still-soggy months of rainy spring, when the teams are typically forced to practice inside Walker Field House.

The Prentiss Field construction is one of the final stages in a multi-stage plan to overhaul athletics complexes on campus. The first stage saw the rebuilding of the Athletic and Fitness Center. Next came the addition of the J.L. Weinberg Sports Pavilion, and this year the newly renovated Kenyon Hall reopened. These improvements were the visions of Fergusson and former Athletics Director Andy Jennings, who is currently overseeing the Prentiss Field project.

“The sad thing is that it’s going to help, but in terms of turf fields, we’re behind the eight-ball and we’re still going to be behind,” said Beverly. Many of Vassar’s competitors are building their second turf field, she said.
“But it’s still going to be a big help for teams,” said Beverly. “One is better than none.”