Former names Foster Field Opened 1939 | Capacity 5,250 Renovated 2004 | |
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Similar Health and Sports Center, GW Frank Museum of History a, Harlen C Hunter Stadium, Francis G Welch Stadium, Museum of Nebraska Art | ||
Ron & Carol Cope Stadium at Foster Field, is a football stadium located in Kearney, Nebraska, on the University of Nebraska–Kearney campus. In 2005, the university named the stadium after Ron & Carol Cope, who were long-time supporters of the University of Nebraska System. The field is named after Charlie Foster, a former coach and athletic director at Nebraska–Kearney.
Contents
Renovations
The stadium had an outdoor track surrounding Foster Field until the early 2000s. After the 2003 season, a FieldTurf surface was installed. The first game played on the new field was on September 3. The Lopers won over Wayne State in front of 3,804 fans.
The complete renovation of the stadium totaled out to be over $7.2 million, which was completed during the 2005 season. The stadium is three-stories tall, and includes concession stands, restrooms, and ticket booths. The third floor has a large hospitality room that seats, coaches and radio booths, game day operations rooms and the press box.
An LED message center and scoreboard was added at the South end zone, as well. The North end zone is a facility that contains the locker rooms, meeting rooms, athletic training facilities, official’s quarters, and equipment storage.
Other uses
The women’s soccer team has played at Cope Stadium since 2009. The program's first regular season game drew 3,227 fans, setting a Division II record that still stands.
Kearney High School also uses the stadium for their home football games.