Frank Myers Field at Tointon Family Stadium is a
baseball stadium
A ballpark, or baseball park, is a type of sports venue where baseball is played. The playing field is divided into the infield, an area whose dimensions are rigidly defined, and the outfield, where dimensions can vary widely from place to pla ...
in
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
,
Kansas
Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to th ...
. It is the home field of the
Kansas State University Wildcats
The wildcat is a species complex comprising two small wild cat species: the European wildcat (''Felis silvestris'') and the African wildcat (''F. lybica''). The European wildcat inhabits forests in Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus, while the ...
college baseball
College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional p ...
team
A team is a group of individuals (human or non-human) working together to achieve their goal.
As defined by Professor Leigh Thompson of the Kellogg School of Management, " team is a group of people who are interdependent with respect to inf ...
. The stadium's official capacity is 2,331 and opened for baseball in 1961. It is named after Bob and Betty Tointon, the principle benefactors for 2002 renovation project.
Construction
Tointon Family Stadium opened as KSU Baseball Stadium in 1961, with a capacity of 1,500. It would be built around the existing diamond, now called Frank Myers Field.
After the stadium's completion the field was dedicated on April 7, 1961, in honor of Frank Myers, K-State's baseball coach who retired the following year. It would be another 24 years until the team could play night games after lights were installed in 1985.
Renovations
In 2002, on its 41st anniversary, KSU Stadium saw the completion of its first significant renovation. The $3.1 million project ended with the dedication on April 20, 2002, named in honor of Betty and Bob Tointon (Class of 1955).
New features included:
* State-of-the-art drainage and irrigation systems
* New home and visiting
dugouts
* New seating for over 2,000 fans with 118 in the suites
*
FieldTurf on the entire infield
* locker room
** 33 custom-built wood lockers
** Bathrooms
** Shower Facilities
** Team Common Room
** New administration offices and facilities
*During the summer of 2011, the entire playing surface was upgraded to AstroTurf GameDay Grass 3D.
The stadium is lined with the
limestone
Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...
donated by the Bayer Stone Company of
St. Marys to match main campus buildings, including
Anderson Hall Anderson Hall may refer to:
Turkey
* Anderson Hall at Boğaziçi University
Boğaziçi University ( tr, Boğaziçi Üniversitesi), also known as Bosphorus University, is a major research university in Istanbul, Turkey. Its main campus is locat ...
. In 2003 a state-of-the-art lighting system, electronic scoreboard, improved warning track and permanent ticket booth were added, followed two years later by new
batting cage
A batting cage (or tunnel) is an enclosed area for baseball or softball players to practice the skill of batting.
The optimal material for batting cages is netting, and they are typically rectangular in shape. Chain-link fence is not required bu ...
s.
In 2020, Tointon Family Stadium completed a $15 million 2-year refurbishment to the facility in conjunction with the neighboring Busser Family Park, home for K-State Women's Soccer. This project brought improvements to the playing field and bullpens, expanded premium seating options on the club level, and upgrades to the clubhouse, new offices, and various other improvements. Expanded fan amenities were installed during the project including a permanent team merchandise store, a playground for young fans and families, and a new 44'x36' videoboard was installed beyond right field and is the first in the stadium's history. The exterior of the facility received a face lift with a new limestone façade to match the theme of other Athletic and Campus facilities. Improvements were also made to the Brandeberry Indoor Practice Facility, one of the few indoor baseball practice facilities in the nation which includes two batting cages, portable pitching mounds, and weight training and conditioning equipment.
Attendance
In 2013, the Wildcats ranked 46th among
Division I baseball programs in attendance, averaging 1,369 per home game.
Historical notes
* The current 8-pole lighting system produces three times the illumination as the former system.
* The facility used a manually operated scoreboard until the renovations in 2002, now using a by
Daktronics
Daktronics is an American company based in Brookings, South Dakota that designs, manufactures, sells, and services video displays, scoreboards, digital billboards, dynamic message signs, sound systems, and related products. Founded in 1968 by ...
scoreboard.
See also
*
List of NCAA Division I baseball venues
References
{{coord, 39, 11, 57, N, 96, 35, 49, W, region:US-KS_type:landmark, display=title
College baseball venues in the United States
Baseball venues in Kansas
Kansas State University buildings
Kansas State Wildcats baseball
Sports venues completed in 1961
1961 establishments in Kansas
University and college buildings completed in 1961