Tweet

The Virginia Tech women’s soccer team calls Thompson Field its home. Located across from Lane Stadium, the Hokies’ football home, Thompson Field was completed in the fall of 2003 and dedicated in 2008 in the name of Sandra D. Thompson, a longtime supporter of women’s athletics at Virginia Tech. The complex also serves as the home for the Tech men’s soccer team and the lacrosse team.

The Tech women’s soccer team certainly has found Thompson Field to its liking over the years. During the 2013 season – the best season in the program’s history – the Hokies won a school-record 12 matches at home on their way to making their first College Cup appearance. Tech won four NCAA matches at home that season, including a win over No. 12 West Virginia and then advancing on penalty kicks against No. 9 Santa Clara. The Hokies also beat No. 9 Notre Dame and No. 19 Wake Forest at home during the regular season.

Another prominent win came during the 2012 season when Tech beat No. 18 Maryland by a 1-0 score. In 2011, Tech downed then-No. 8 North Carolina 1-0 at home.

In 2008, the Hokies topped two top-10 ACC foes, as they beat in-state rival No. 8 Virginia 1-0 and No. 11 Duke by the same score, both at Thompson Field, on their way to their second ever NCAA Tournament appearance. The 2009 season was another remarkable one at home as the Hokies topped No. 1 North Carolina, while also setting a new home win streak record with seven consecutive wins at Thompson Field.

The facility features a bluegrass playing surface and measures approximately 75 by 120 yards. It is equipped with an underground irrigation system and a drainage system that allows for the field to be ready for play quickly following rainstorms. The complex also features a wireless scoreboard, and a permanent Hubbell lighting system allows for night games.

The athletics department has made improvements gradually since the venue opened in 2003. In 2005, workers completed a new restroom facility for the field, and during the summer of 2008, a new game operations center was erected atop the stadium above the fans. The approximately 900-square foot facility includes two broadcast booths, two covered areas available for broadcasting and/or videographers’ cameras, and a large working area for media covering the Hokies.

The climate-controlled facility also contains a state-of-the-art sound system and Ethernet capability. The Internet-ready facility allows Tech’s official athletics website, hokiesports.com, to originate live audio broadcasts and live stats of the Hokies’ matches from the press box. Above the grandstand is a wired camera deck, which is accessible to all media.

Between each team’s bench area is the Sandy D. Thompson Press Box. Formerly the press operations center for the field, the facility is now used as a halftime room for game officials and as an auxiliary area for press and game operations.

Thompson Field, which has been expanded since it was opened, now features approximately 2,028 bench-back seats, where each fan has an unobstructed view of the playing surface. Spacious area around the field allows for nearly 1,500 more fans to watch games.

Adjacent to Thompson Field are two practice fields that allow the Tech women’s soccer team to train while reducing the wear and tear on the playing field. One of these practice fields features artificial turf, which allows for practicing during inclement weather and for preparing for opponents who hold their games on artificial turf fields.

The improvements over the years, the enthusiasm of the fan base and the play on the field make Thompson Field one of the best venues in the ACC to watch women’s soccer.