Schmidt Fieldhouse, formerly known as Xavier University Fieldhouse, is an on-campus arena at

Xavier University Xavier University ( ) is a private Jesuit university in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. It is the sixth-oldest Catholic and fourth-oldest Jesuit university in the United States. Xavier had an enrollment of approximately 5,600 undergraduate an ...

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

History

It was built in 1927 and opened on March 7, 1928, with a win against archrival

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

. It is named for Walter Schmidt, Class of 1905, a benefactor to then-St. Xavier College who also donated money for Schmidt Hall (formerly the library, now the President's office) on campus. It was the first on-campus arena for the university, and was in use by the men's basketball team from the last game of the 1928 season to 1983, when the team moved to the off-campus

Cincinnati Gardens Cincinnati Gardens was an indoor arena located in Cincinnati, Ohio, that opened in 1949. The 25,000 square foot (2,300 m2) brick and limestone building at 2250 Seymour Avenue in Bond Hill had an entrance that was decorated with six three-dimensio ...

full-time. (The team had played a few big games a year there, as well as

Riverfront Coliseum Heritage Bank Center is an indoor arena in downtown Cincinnati, adjacent to Great American Ball Park. It was completed in September 1975 and named Riverfront Coliseum because of its placement next to Riverfront Stadium. In 1997, the facility be ...

, prior to that.) Since 1983, the team has only returned once to the arena, for a game against

Florida International University Florida International University (FIU) is a public research university with its main campus in Westchester, Florida, United States. Founded in 1965 by the Florida Legislature, the school opened to students in 1972. FIU is the third-largest univ ...

in January 1988. Schmidt Fieldhouse was also used by the women's basketball team from 1971 until moving to the

Cintas Center The Cintas Center is a 10,250-seat multi-purpose arena and conference center on the campus on Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio. The arena officially opened in 2000 and was constructed through private donations as part of Xavier University's C ...

in 2000. Currently the fieldhouse is the home of the

Cincinnati Rollergirls The Cincinnati Rollergirls is a women's flat track roller derby league based in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 2005, the league currently consists of two teams which compete against teams from other leagues, and is a member of the Women's Flat Trac ...

. It is also used for the school's recreational sports program. It has also hosted concerts, including

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...

, Rush and

Robin Trower Robin Leonard Trower (born 9 March 1945) is an English rock guitarist who achieved success with Procol Harum throughout 1967–1971 and then again as the bandleader of his own power trio known as the Robin Trower Band. Biography Robin Trower ...

, and a speech by President

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...

in 1996.

External links

Schmidt Field House at the Xavier website
{{Xavier Musketeers women's basketball navbox Defunct college basketball venues in the United States Xavier Musketeers basketball venues 1928 establishments in Ohio Sports venues completed in 1928