DENTON, Texas (August 17, 2018) – Texas Woman's University will debut a new soccer facility for its NCAA Division II program on Monday, September 3, with the grand opening of Pioneer Soccer Park as TWU Soccer is slated to take on Westminster College at noon in the 2018 season home opener.
 
Admission will be free and the gates will open at 10:30 a.m. To commemorate the grand opening, t-shirts will be given away (while supplies last), and Outback Steakhouse will be serving free lunch beginning at 11:30 a.m. A ceremonial "First Kick" will take place on the field approximately 10 minutes prior to the start of the game and will include TWU Soccer student-athletes, Chancellor and President Dr. Carine Feyten, Vice President for Student Life Dr. Monica Mendez-Grant, members of the Student Government Association, Director of Athletics Chalese Connors, Head Coach Babak Abouzar, and other important individuals involved in the construction of the facility.
 
Pioneer Soccer Park, located on part of the former TWU Golf Course, sits in a beautiful park-like setting surrounded by post oak trees and lush greens on the northeast side of campus. Dallas-based Sportscapes Construction is the project's general contractor with the Dallas offices of SmithGroup JJR and JQ Engineering assisting with professional services. The TWU Project Manager is Tim Wentrcek.
 
With the incredible growth of the institution, TWU began construction in March 2018 on a three-building residential village on the site of the old TWU Soccer Field that will add 800+ beds for on-campus housing. When the golf course was closed May 4, construction began on the new home for TWU Soccer. The PSP is completely enclosed with fences and gates, and includes a competition field measuring 75 yards by 120 yards, a new scoreboard, lights, bleacher seating, a press box with a video deck, public address system, and covered team benches. The competition field features TifSport, a hybrid variety of Bermuda grass selected for turf quality, high density, and turf strength. A lighted walkway and road connect the nearby parking lot to not only Pioneer Soccer Park, but also the new Intramural Field operated by the Fitness & Recreation Department. Future plans at this site include the construction of a building to house restrooms, a ticket booth, a concessions stand and storage that will serve both TWU Soccer and the students that use the intramural field.
 
Pioneer Soccer Park is TWU's fourth home field since the program was added in 2002. Home games were played for the first two seasons on the west side of campus before the University needed the open, flat area for what is now the Lowry Woods Community, TWU's first foray into on-campus apartments. For the next three years, TWU Soccer practiced and played off campus at the UNT Recreational Fields until a new venue was constructed. In August 2007, the TWU Soccer Field was completed and the facility was home to the Pioneers for 10 years and seven months. Because of the need for residential housing and the location of the field, the Pioneers were again displaced but this time it was for only a short six-month period.