On Oct. 23, the Vandal women’s soccer team celebrated a 4-0 victory over Southern Utah that secured the No. 1 seed in the Big Sky playoffs and the right to host the conference’s postseason tournament.
But when Idaho took to the pitch for a Nov. 4 playoff match against regional rival Eastern Washington, the game was not in Moscow. Instead, the Vandals were on the road in Cheney, despite the lower ranking of the team’s opponent.
Why was Idaho on the road for a pivotal showdown in the conference tournament instead of playing at home in front of hundreds of fans? The answer is mud.
Rainy October weather and drainage issues at Guy Wicks Field produced soggy field conditions that made the pitch difficult to play on. As a result, the Big Sky deemed the field surface unplayable, forcing the Vandals to relinquish hosting rights to rival Eastern Washington. The Eagles capitalized on the home-field advantage by winning the postseason championship and advancing to the NCAA Tournament.
The loss of home-field advantage impacted not only the Vandal soccer team, but the Moscow community as well. When Idaho hosted the conference tournament last year, nearly 1,000 spectators arrived to watch the championship match against Northern Colorado. That means local hotels and restaurants in Moscow potentially lost hundreds of potential customers who instead traveled to Cheney.
In addition, head coach Derek Pittman was denied the opportunity to showcase the UI campus and soccer facilities to prospective recruits who would be in attendance at the tournament.
This leads many to wonder why no action has been taken to fix Guy Wicks Field. According to Dan Ewart, the vice president of infrastructure, the university opted to prioritize the proposed the $30 million Idaho Arena over renovations to Guy Wicks Field, which are estimated at $300,000.
A collegiate program that has won back-to-back regular season titles should not be forced to watch as its home field rapidly deteriorates. Instead of building up a program that has displayed an unprecedented level of success, the university is turning its attention away from Guy Wicks Field in favor of a controversial project that is still $15 million away from reaching its goal.
Athletic success should be rewarded, no matter the sport. UI administrators need to worry about taking care of the facilities that are already in place, rather than distracting Vandal fans with sketches of a decades-old project.
— JG