WORCESTER, Mass. – Holy Cross Director of Athletics Kit Hughes has announced that the department will begin renovations on the Hart Turf Field and Track on Friday, May 13, with a target completion in September 2022.
"Upgrading the field hockey and track and field facility is a significant investment that will help us provide the best possible student-athlete experience for our program," Hughes said. "In addition to the enhancement of the training and competition surface, the opportunity to upgrade our branding within the facility will only add to the pride and excitement experienced by our student-athletes, staff and guests. We are grateful for the College's support of this project and are excited to get things moving."
With the $3.1 million investment from the College, the renovation will entail the resurfacing of both the track and field, as well as the installation of a state-of-the-art irrigation system. The track will be resurfaced with Rekortan Advance Polymer Surface, and the turf will be replaced with the new AstroTurf12 system.
The irrigation system will include six high-pressure water cannons to cover the game field, reducing the amount of water previously used to irrigate the surface by almost 50 percent.
"This renovation means so much to the field hockey program," said head field hockey coach Lindsay Jackson. "The additional piece of having an irrigation system installed is a long time coming and such an impactful addition that will improve our practice and game day experience tremendously — not only for the team but also our facilities department and community, as it will be an efficient use of our resources."
Servicing 128 student-athletes, the Hart Turf Field and Track are the highest volume playing surfaces on campus. Both were built in 1988 and renovated in 2011. The field now consists of AstroTurf on Elastic Layer, while the track has a Beynon Sports Surface BSS 1000 Full Pour Embedded Surface.
"What an outstanding commitment to track and field, field hockey and the Holy Cross community," said women's track and field head coach Egetta Alfonso. "This facility will be a showpiece guaranteed to attract recruits and inspire better performances. I love the idea of our athletes being surrounded by Crusader Purple as they practice and compete."
"We are so excited and ready to see the progress of the project this summer," Jackson said.
Fans who are interested in watching the progress of the renovations may tune into a live feed of the construction, available on the GoHolyCross YouTube page.
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The College of the Holy Cross, in Worcester, Massachusetts — the second-largest city in New England — is among the nation's leading liberal arts institutions. A highly selective, four-year, exclusively undergraduate college of 3,100 students, Holy Cross is renowned for offering a rigorous, personalized education in the Jesuit, Catholic tradition, and is one of only 85 colleges in America that meets 100% of students' demonstrated financial need. Holy Cross has made a positive impact in society since its founding in 1843 by graduating students who distinguish themselves as thoughtful leaders in business, professional and civic life.
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