Breaking New Ground
Athletics at Wentworth has a history almost as long as the university itself. Beginning with baseball in 1914, the Wentworth athletic roster has since grown to include basketball, cross country, golf, ice hockey, lacrosse, soccer, tennis, track & field, and volleyball.
IN JUNE, the university wrote a new chapter in this history, breaking ground on a state-of-the-art athletic complex at 600 Parker Street. As part of the project, Sweeney Field will be re-located and re-imagined as a regulation-size turf field, allowing Wentworth to host NCAA competitions for the first time since applying for membership 1984. The new field will sit atop a parking garage with space for electric vehicle charging and team buildings, including an expanded sports medicine clinic.
This transformative project would not have been possible without the support of stakeholders in Mission Hill, whose input was crucial to realizing Wentworth’s mission of forming high-value partnerships in the community. Among other community benefits, residents of the Mission Main and Alice Heyward Taylor Apartments will be able to use the new field, and Wentworth will host and provide equipment for youth athletic programs through the Tobin Community Center.
“This spectacular project is the next step in the development of the department and transforming our student-athlete experience,” said Director of Athletics Cheryl Aaron at the groundbreaking ceremony. “Our student body and local community will have the opportunity to run and kick and pass and throw and engage with each other in all types of healthy outdoor activities.”
- LOCATION: 600–620 Parker Street
- TOTAL SITE AREA: 133,196 sq. ft.
- CONSTRUCTION: Gilbane Building Company
- DESIGN AND CIVIL: CDM Smith
- PROJECT MANAGEMENT: STV
So Long, Farewell (For Now)
Since it opened in August 1996, Sweeney Field has served as the home for Wentworth softball, soccer, and lacrosse. Named for longtime Wentworth benefactors Myles Elliott ’28 and Eugenia Louise Sweeney, the synthetic turf has played host to its share of wins and losses over the years, starting with the men’s soccer team’s 1996 Commonwealth Coast Conference championship.
Sweeney Field is a special place for senior Ceilidh Higgins. Higgins, a biomedical engineering major and starting third baseman for the Wentworth Women’s Softball team, didn’t just play there for four years—she hit her first home run on the FieldTurf.
“I will always have some of the best memories of playing on Sweeney Field,” said Higgins, who graduated in August. “The Wentworth Softball Easter egg hunt, 6 a.m. practices [it ] will always be in my heart, but I am so excited for [the] future Leopards who will have the chance to practice and compete at the new athletic facility.”