Fetzer Field serves as the Home of the Tar Heels for men's and women's lacrosse and men's and women's soccer. The Irwin Belk Track at Fetzer Field is the home of the men's and women's track and field teams. Fetzer Field is one of the premier soccer and lacrosse domains in the country. Originally built in 1935 and renovated during a period from 1988-90, the facility was named for former Tar Heel athletic director and track coach Bob Fetzer. Fetzer Field has been the home of Carolina soccer since 1947, the first year UNC sponsored a varsity men's team and Carolina men's lacrosse since 1949, its starting year. The women's soccer program was started in 1979 and the women's lacrosse program in 1996. Located in the heart of the Carolina campus directly behind Carmichael Auditorium on South Road (N.C. State Road 54), the field was completed in 1935 as a Works Project Administration program during the administration of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The facility's recent renovations made it one of the most beautiful all-around collegiate venues in the nation. The playing field itself was reworked and leveled, the grandstand was refitted with new aluminum bleachers, lights were added, two convenient ticket booths were added to the front gate and a computer scoreboard/message center was installed. Even more recently the facilities' concession areas have been revamped so they are more convenient for fans. Fetzer Field now has a seating capacity of 5,025. The $1.6 million worth of renovations to Fetzer Field also included the installation of the new running track, throwing circles, and jumping and throwing runways. The track received its official name in honor of Irwin "Ike" Belk, a former Tar Heel letterman whose assistance made the work of the facility a reality. The Irwin Belk Track is an international-style track. This means the turns are European-style and are wider than most American tracks, resulting in broader curves and faster times, especially in the 200 and 400 meter races. The track itself is a Full-Depth Polyurethene ISS 2000 Encapsulated track, installed by Martin Surfacing of Cockeyville, Md. The track has been designed with an outside steeplechase barrier and sprint lanes that go in both directions on each side of the track. The facility has four multi-directional runways for jumping, six throwing circles and two javelin runways. A brand-new Daktronic scoreboard that is capable of instantaneous results, was installed. The board is lined to the two Accutrak systems installed to record the times of the races so that immediately following the conclusion of the race, the six-best times will appear on the scoreboard. Fetzer Field has been home to women's soccer NCAA and ACC Championships, the 1991 and 1993 ACC Track and Field Championships, the North Carolina High School Athletic Association Track and Field Championships, the National Junior Olympics, men's soccer and men's lacrosse ACC Tournaments, men's soccer NCAA first and second round action and NCAA men's lacrosse tournament action in first rounds, quarterfinal and semifinal games. In the summer of 1996, the facility was the home training site for the United States Track and Field Team as it prepared for the Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta. Some of the largest crowds to ever watch women's collegiate soccer games have been at Fetzer Field. In 1988, an estimated throng of 4,500 fans came out to Fetzer for the NCAA final between Carolina and N.C. State. That was, at the time, the largest crowd ever to attend a collegiate women's soccer match. The 1990 NCAA Tournament drew an estimated 6,700 spectators to the stadium-2,000 to watch the quarterfinal round win over N.C. State, 1,500 for the semifinal round and 3,200 for the championship game. Another 7,000 fans streamed through the Fetzer Field gates to watch the 1991 NCAA tournament games, which culminated in a title-game victory over Wisconsin. In 1992, more than 3,500 enthusiasts braved a steady downpour as the Tar Heels crushed ACC rival Duke 9-1 in the national finals. A year later, in Mia Hamm's collegiate finale, 5,721 fans were on hand at Fetzer as Carolina routed George Mason 6-0 in the title game. In men's soccer, the largest crowd to watch a Carolina game at Fetzer Field turned out for the game on October 2, 1999. A school-record 3,825 fans watched the Tar Heels battle the Duke Blue Devils.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
