Stadiums and Arenas -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 WHERE THE ACTION IS

We continue to creep towards the start of the 2020-2021 season for UofL. And it does feel like we are creeping that way as games can't seem to start soon enough.

Louisville is home to some fine venues that fans of opposing teams have complimented. These stadiums can also provide a strong home field advantage.

Today, we'll take a look at some of the venues that house the fall sports.

Stadiums and Arenas

L&N Federal Credit Union Arena

Photo from west end zone of arena

The newest, well, most recently renovated, venue is L&N Federal Credit Union Arena, which is home to Louisville Volleyball.

Formerly known as Cardinal Arena, the VolleyCards have called this place home during two different eras. Cardinal Arena was the only home for Louisville during the days of Leonid Yelin as head coach as well as the early days of Anne Kordes as head coach. It wasn't until Kordes took over before Louisville started playing some larger matches at the KFC Yum! Center. By the time Kordes reached her final season in the fall of 2016, nearly every match was held at the KFC Yum! Center.

Dani Busboom Kelly came to Louisville in 2017, the same year UofL completely renovated the on-campus arena. Thanks to a generous donation by L&N Federal Credit Union, Cardinal Arena was renamed L&N Federal Credit Union Arena.

The newly-renovated arena now has a true arena-style feel with seating located a full 360° around the court. Most of the seating comes along the sidelines with a couple rows hanging out in each end zone, hovering above the floor and team benches. There is also a concession stand on the east side of the arena by the front entrance up against Floyd Street.

The 1,100-seat facility has seen plenty of sold out full house crowds with tickets being sold as standing room only before. Due to its small size, L&N Federal Credit Union Arena can be deafening for opposing teams.

The Cards have 13 home matches scheduled this year in the LNFCU. 

Dr Mark and Cindy Lynn Stadium

Photo from northeast corner of stadium

The newest facility on campus not including renamed venues or renovations is Dr Mark and Cindy Lynn Stadium, which houses both Louisville Women's Soccer and Louisville Men's Soccer. The stadium named is often shortened to Lynn Stadium, which we will refer to it as in this article.

Constructed in 2014, the stadium is still considered one of the best collegiate soccer facilities in the country and has even been used by Louisville's professional soccer team, Louisville City FC.

Lynn Stadium uses natural grass on the pitch and is maintained daily by the grounds crew. Fans can view the match from all sides of the stadium with a majority of the viewing area being the chairback seats on the south side of the stadium. The east end zone is made up of bleachers that sit up against the offices and locker rooms. There is a grass berm on the north side and west end zone with a playground located on the north berm.

Prior to their time at Lynn Stadium, the Cards played at the Louisville Track and Soccer Stadium on Floyd Street, right across the street from L&N Federal Credit Union Arena. Lynn Stadium is also located on Floyd Street, but further down near Cardinal Stadium (football).

The press box is located on the south side with the chairback seating. The south side of the stadium features a large awning to cover fans from the elements.

The Cards have 11 home matches scheduled this year in Lynn. .

Trager Stadium

Photo from west end of stadium

Louisville Field Hockey is the only fall team to only have not seen a new stadium or renovations in recent years. Trager Stadium has been home to the Cards since its construction in 2000. The Cards chose to celebrate my sixth birthday with a venue-premier win over Ohio on Sept. 22, 2000. Sorry if that makes you feel old!

Viewed as one of the premier field hockey facilities in the country, Trager Stadium has hosted six NCAA DI championships and three NCAA DIII championships.

Trager Stadium has a state of the art astro turf. The synthetic turf is thinner and harder than a football field turf, allowing players to run easily and the ball to roll smoothly. The turf also absorbs water well to prevent flooding but also to allow enough water to remain for a suitable playing surface.

In 2008, there was an expansion to Trager Stadium, adding many bleachers to raise the capacity to 1,500. All spectator seating is on the east side of the stadium with the benches and press box on the west side. The end zones remain empty.

The Cards have nine official home matches scheduled this year in Trager.

We are fortunate to experience these venues first hand on a yearly basis either from a spectator standpoint or in the press box. Admission is fee for soccer and field hockey while volleyball is a ticketed event.

We highly encourage you to visit each venue to check out a game sometime. Of course, if attending games in person isn't your thing, UofL does an excellent job with airing their games on the ACC Network or ACC Network Extra.

Also, in regards to that photo at the top of Louie flying, why did I just find out that we used to have Louie "fly" in from the rafters at Freedom Hall? That's actually really neat!

Happy Tuesday and Go Cards!

Jared