Buck Shaw Stadium
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Buck Shaw Stadium | |
|---|---|
| Buck Shaw | |
 |
|
| Location | 500 El Camino Real, Santa Clara, California 95053 |
| Broke ground | 1961 |
| Opened | September 22, 1962 |
| Owner | Santa Clara University |
| Operator | Santa Clara University |
| Surface | Grass |
| Tenants | |
| Santa Clara University Broncos soccer (NCAA WCC) (1962-present) Santa Clara University Broncos football (NCAA WCC) (1962-1992) Santa Clara University Broncos baseball (NCAA WCC) (1963-2005) |
|
| Seats | |
| 6,800 | |
Buck Shaw Stadium is a 6,800 seat multipurpose stadium at Santa Clara University in Santa Clara, California. The stadium is the current home of the Santa Clara Broncos soccer teams and was the former home of the now defunct Santa Clara football team as well as the Santa Clara baseball team. The baseball team moved to their new home at Stephen Schott Stadium in 2005.
[edit] Stadium history
Buck Shaw opened its gates for the first time on September 22, 1962 when it hosted a football game between UC Davis and Santa Clara. The stadium was named for Lawrence T. "Buck" Shaw, a legendary former football coach of the SCU Broncos.
Buck Shaw Stadium holds the current record for highest attendance at a women's outdoor collegiate sporting event. In 1996 the NCAA Women's College Cup (Division I soccer finals) was played at Buck Shaw, which had its capacity temporarily expanded to 8,800 seats and sold out both days of the tournament.
The stadium had the distinction of being the official practice field of the Brazil soccer team for the 1994 FIFA World Cup. The Brazilians won the World Cup that year. It also played host to the Romanian national team for their practice prior to that year's quarterfinal match.
In 2006, Buck Shaw hosted three pool matches in the Churchill Cup rugby union competition, becoming the first U.S. venue to host matches in the four-year history of the event (all matches in the 2003-2005 editions had been in Canada).
Buck Shaw has been the location of the commencement ceremonies for Santa Clara University for the last several years.
[edit] Expansion plans
Santa Clara University has recently announced plans to renovate and expand Buck Shaw Stadium into a venue better suited for the university's soccer programs. Like baseball's new Schott Stadium, Buck Shaw will have a sand based field that drains water quickly enough to play games shortly after rainstorms. The total price tag of the renovation is expected to exceed $15 million dollars.
"After the 2005 season, tentative plans are in place to resurface the playing field and move it 50 feet towards the entrance, which will allow for a full-size practice field, a luxury the Broncos do not currently have. Following the 2006 season, construction on new seating will begin. There are plans to add new grandstands to both sides of the field, to reconfigure the lights specifically for soccer and to refurbish the concession area." --Jeremy Herb, The Santa Clara (link)
