Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 11/30/16
From Press Release
Providence and Villanova will host the BIG EAST Men’s Lacrosse Championship presented by Jeep for 2017 and 2018, respectively, as announced by the conference on Tuesday.
The 2017 Championship will be held at Chapey Field at Anderson Stadium in Providence, R.I. on May 4 and 6. Chapey Field was officially christened on May 2, 2016 and is the home of the men’s and women’s soccer and men’s lacrosse teams. The stadium features seating for more than 1,500 fans, chair back seats, a new press box and two luxury boxes for entertainment. In addition the stadium also has new locker rooms for home and visiting teams and a 13HD Daktronics video board.
“We are pleased to have the opportunity to host the BIG EAST Men’s Lacrosse Championship in 2017,” Providence Athletics Director Bob Driscoll said. “Chapey Field at Anderson Stadium is an incredible facility, which has already hosted a number of high profile events during BIG EAST and NCAA Championship play. We are looking forward to showcasing our facility and hosting a top-notch event this May, in addition to welcoming the participating teams and lacrosse fans to Friartown and the City of Providence.”
The 2017 Men’s Lacrosse Championship will be the second BIG EAST Championship event held at Chapey Field. It was also the site of the 2016 Men’s Soccer Championship semifinal between Providence and Creighton.
The 2018 championship, which will be held May 3 and 5, returns to the campus of Villanova University at Villanova Stadium where it was held from 2012-2015. The stadium is home to Villanova football, men’s and women’s lacrosse, men’s and women’s track & field and intramurals. Villanova Stadium seats 12,500 spectators and features a Field Turf playing surface.
“We could not be more excited about hosting the BIG EAST Championships in 2018,” said Villanova University Director of Athletics Mark Jackson. “We hope the Philadelphia and Main Line region’s love for lacrosse will draw many fans to our campus to watch elite level BIG EAST lacrosse.”
In 1999, Villanova stadium underwent a facelift to add a press box. The press box includes ticket offices on the first floor, a large open floor plan which can be used for press conferences on the second floor, a working press area and individual boxes used for hospitality, radio and TV. Villanova installed a new HD LED video and ribbon board to the stadium. It was unveiled during the 2016 football season and was part of the West End Zone Project renovations.
BIG EAST men’s lacrosse incorporated a championship, with two semifinals on Thursday and a championship game on Saturday in 2012. Since 2012, there have been three champions: Syracuse, Denver and most recently Marquette in 2016. Providence is just the third site to host the BIG EAST Men’s Lacrosse Championship. Denver hosted the championship in 2016.
