{"id":83220,"date":"2015-05-05T12:00:36","date_gmt":"2015-05-05T16:00:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/?p=83220"},"modified":"2016-02-02T16:12:04","modified_gmt":"2016-02-02T21:12:04","slug":"slideshow-garcelon-fields-gifts-to-bates-college","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/2015\/05\/05\/slideshow-garcelon-fields-gifts-to-bates-college\/","title":{"rendered":"11 ways that Garcelon Field is the Bates place to be"},"content":{"rendered":"

The $2.6 million donor-funded renovation to Garcelon Field in 2010 has led to a lot of good things for Bates over the last five years, including tonight’s first-round NCAA men’s lacrosse game<\/a> between Bates and Keene State at 7 p.m.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>

That Garcelon is at a campus crossroads (Commons and Ladd Library to the south, residences to the north, academic buildings to the west, and other athletic facilities to the east) is apparent in this aerial photograph during the Bates vs. Wesleyan football game on Oct. 11, 2014. (Lincoln Benedict ’09)<\/p><\/div>\n

The 2010 renovation featured a new FieldTurf surface; an aluminum grandstand for 1,500 fans including stadium seats in the center section; a larger press box; and four Musco light towers for nighttime play.<\/p>\n

Today’s game is the first playoff contest ever played on the field since it was built in 1899 and named for a leading Lewiston and Maine citizen, Alonzo Garcelon<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Bates football was\u00a0Garcelon’s only tenant for much of its history, and like its NESCAC counterparts, football does not play in the post-season. But with the 2010 renovation, and the lacrosse program’s move to Garcelon Field, the door was open for the field’s debut tonight as an NCAA post-season venue.<\/p>\n

During dedication ceremonies in 2010, PA announcer Luke Wamboldt \u201911 said the renovation was “an improvement not just for Bates athletics, but for Bates College.\u201d<\/p>\n

In that spirit, here are 11 ways that Garcelon is the Bates place to be.<\/p>\n

\n

1. A Place Where It’s a Great Day to Be a Bobcat<\/h3>\n

Made possible by Bates donors, dedication day in 2010 was a happy day that set the tone for an invigorated Bates place.<\/p>\n