Hawley Field Explained

Stadium Name:Hawley Field
Location:Morgantown, West Virginia, USA
Coordinates:39.6507°N -79.9848°W
Opened:1971
Renovated:2013
Closed:2014
Owner:West Virginia University
Operator:West Virginia University
Surface:Natural grass
Tenants:West Virginia Mountaineers baseball (1971–2014)
A-10 Tournament (1985)
Seating Capacity:1,500
Dimensions:Left Field: 325 ft
Left Center Field: 375 ft
Center Field: 390 ft
Right Center Field: 375 ft
Right Field: 325 ft

Hawley Field is a baseball field in Morgantown, West Virginia, United States. Along with Appalachian Power Park in Charleston, West Virginia, it served as one of two home venues of the West Virginia Mountaineers baseball team before the new Monongalia County Ballpark opened in April 2015. The stadium holds 1,500 spectators.

Hawley Field hosted the 1985 Atlantic 10 Conference baseball tournament, which the Mountaineers won on their home field.[1]

Prior to the 2013 season, the facility's infield was resodded.[2]

West Virginia joined the Big 12 Conference following the 2012 season. Since Hawley Field does not meet Big 12 Conference standards, and the state legislature turned down a plan for a taxpayer funded replacement, the Mountaineers played three of their four 2013 home conference series at Appalachian Power Park in Charleston and one at Linda K. Epling Stadium in Beckley (160 and 185 miles from campus, respectively). Non-conference games continued to be played at Hawley Field.[3] In 2013, plans were announced to build a new venue in the nearby town of Granville for the Mountaineers baseball team.[4] The new park, ultimately known as Monongalia County Ballpark, was originally scheduled to open at the start of the 2015 season, but weather-related construction delays forced the Mountaineers to play their first several 2015 home games in Washington, Pennsylvania until the new park opened that April.[5]

In 2013, the Mountaineers ranked 50th among Division I baseball programs in attendance, averaging 1,328 per home game.[6]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Atlantic 10 Conference Baseball Record Book. CSTV. Atlantic 10 Conference. February 16, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20130619004417/http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/atl10/sports/m-basebl/auto_pdf/2011-12/misc_non_event/Baseball_Records_thru2011.pdf. June 19, 2013. 17. live.
  2. Web site: Dovey. Grant. Hawley Field Receives Facelift. WVUSports.com. January 17, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130316140800/http://www.wvusports.com/blogs.cfm?blog=baseballBlog&story=22751. March 16, 2013. live. January 9, 2013.
  3. Web site: Toquinto. Jeff. Bridgeport Still Option for WVU Baseball, but Charleston, Others to See Team in 2013. Connect-Bridgeport.com. July 5, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20141022194243/http://www.connect-bridgeport.com/connect.cfm?func=view&section=Sports&item=Bridgeport-Still-Option-for-WVU-Baseball-but-Charleston-Others-to-See-Team-in-2013309. October 22, 2014. live. May 20, 2012.
  4. Web site: WVU Board Approves Land Buy for Baseball Stadium. WBOY-TV. Associated Press. June 7, 2013. https://archive.today/20130607170557/http://www.wboy.com/story/22521509/wvu-board-approves-land-buy-for-baseball-stadium. June 7, 2013. dead. June 6, 2013.
  5. Web site: 2015 Baseball Schedule . . April 27, 2015.
  6. Web site: Cutler. Tami. 2013 Division I Baseball Attendance - Final Report. Sportswriters.net. NCBWA. July 20, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20140728065411/http://www.sportswriters.net/ncbwa/news/2013/attendance130611.pdf. July 28, 2014. June 11, 2013. dead.