After years of competitive play at Guy Wicks Field, the Idaho women’s soccer team will be moving indoors for the 2017 season.
The Vandals are scheduled to play their entire home slate inside the Kibbie Dome, establishing the team as the lone Division I program to use an indoor facility as its primary pitch.
“We’re very excited to be able to move into the Kibbie Dome and be able to play on a brand new surface,” Idaho head coach Derek Pittman said in a news release. “We’re thankful to President (Chuck) Staben and Dr. (Rob) Spear for making it happen.”
Because a soccer pitch requires an additional 17 yards of width compared to a football field, the University of Idaho plans to install a new playing surface to be utilized for both sports during a four-week period in late June.
Halles Construction is scheduled to complete the installation using a Matrix synthetic turf system.
“It’s really about replacing the turf that’s at the end of its useful life and making sure we have the best technology available to protect our student athletes,” Spear said in the news release. “This is the newest generation of turf. It’s going to add a lot of quality to the inside of the Kibbie Dome. It’s going to be a quality surface for our athletes for both football and soccer.”
The indoor transition also results in live streaming opportunities for every home match.
“It’s going to be a great venue for our players to be able to showcase our talents and continue to protect our home field,” Pittman said in the release. “I’m very happy to have the opportunity to host 12 home games in 2017 in our brand new facility. I’m excited about the opportunity to continue having success here with Vandals Soccer and continue moving forward in the coming years.”
Idaho currently boasts the second longest home unbeaten streak in the nation with an 18-game stretch spanning 901 days. The Vandals won the 2016 Big Sky regular season title with a 7-1-2 conference record, but the team was forced to move the postseason to tournament to Eastern Washington because of drainage issues Guy Wicks Field.
Idaho also won the regular season title in 2015 with a 9-0-1 showing against conference opponents.
Josh Grissom can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @GoshJrissom