When Ohio coach Neil Macmillan learned this summer that the renovation of Pruitt Field would keep the Bobcats from using their home pitch, he said he needed somewhere to practice that was “flat — like a tennis court.”
That’s what he got after Ohio’s opening weekend of play, as the pop of tennis racquets now provides background sound for his practices.
But even though Macmillan now refers to the sized-down practice surface at the Ohio University Tennis Courts as “home,” the Bobcats needn’t get too comfortable with their temporary surroundings.
They will move back into their permanent home in early October, and the temporary surface will be sent back to AstroTurf, Macmillan said.
“(I scheduled) the first three weekends on the road because deep down I had a feeling that construction projects can go on a little bit, so I just wanted to make sure that we were being safe,” he said. “We only had four home games to start with, so if we lose one and play the other three we really haven’t lost a considerable amount.”
The move will still be several weeks behind schedule, as a faulty drainage system discovered during field renovations this summer raised a red flag for contractors.
“We didn’t feel like it was worth not fixing,” said Harry Wyatt, OU associate vice president for facilities.
He also noted that though the field should be resurfaced every 10 to 12 years, failing to replace the drainage system would force OU to revisit it in half that time. New AstroTurf was last installed there in 1999.
The project was initially slated to cost the university $1.75 million, according to the June 21 Board of Trustees agenda, and now costs $2.29 million because of the additional construction, Wyatt said. That total also includes the cost of renovating Goldsberry Track, which surrounds Pruitt Field.
Ohio track and field coach Clay Calkins declined to comment about the construction, and Jason Farmer, Ohio assistant athletic director for facilities and operations, was unavailable for comment.
When Ohio moves back to Pruitt, it will be greeted with a new-look AstroTurf surface complete with a black border, white field hockey lines and less conspicuous dark green football markings than the field featured before, Macmillan said.
He said it will also feature a 10-foot fence on each end, which will allow the field hockey and track teams to practice simultaneously without interruption — a luxury they weren’t previously afforded.
Andrea Biegalski, a redshirt senior, said though Ohio doesn’t mind playing on the road, she and her teammates are looking forward to hosting games, especially the Bobcats’ Nov. 2 senior night.
“We don’t need a bunch of games to fulfill our needs for that,” she said. “Having one to dedicate to us and go out with a bang at home is really what we need.”
Macmillan is as excited as any to practice and compete on the revamped pitch.
“It’s going to be fantastic,” he said. “It’s going to look like our own facility.”
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