Charles "Buddy" Bolding Stadium is a

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

venue in

Farmville, Virginia Farmville is a town in Prince Edward and Cumberland counties in the U.S. state of Virginia. The population was 8,216 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Prince Edward County. Farmville developed near the headwaters of the Appomattox R ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. It is home to the

Longwood Lancers baseball The Longwood Lancers baseball team represents Longwood University, which is located in Farmville, Virginia. The Lancers are an NCAA Division I college baseball program that competes in the Big South Conference. They began competing in Divisi ...

team, a member of the

Big South Conference The Big South Conference is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division I. Originally a non-football conference, the Big South began sponsoring football in 2002 as part of the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS). Th ...

. Opened in 1994, the venue has a capacity of 500. It is named for

Buddy Bolding Buddy Bolding is a former American coach of the Longwood Lancers baseball team, a member of the NCAA Division I Big South Conference. Longwood's home baseball venue, Bolding Stadium, is named after him. Playing career Bolding played college ...

, who was the first head coach of the Lancers' baseball team, who served for 35 seasons from 1978 until his retirement after the 2013 season. Features of the stadium include a recessed dugouts, a

press box The press box is a special section of a sports stadium or arena that is set up for the media to report about a given event. It is typically located in the section of the stadium holding the luxury box and can be either enclosed or open to the e ...

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 but ...

s, and irrigation.

History

Construction completed in 1993 and the stadium was dedicated October 5 of that year. The facility's first game, March 12, 1994, saw Longwood best

Davis & Elkins College Davis & Elkins College (D&E) is a private college in Elkins, West Virginia. History The school was founded in 1904 and is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church. It was named for Henry G. Davis and his son-in-law Stephen B. Elkins, who were b ...

8-3. In 1996 and 1997, the stadium hosted the Carolinas-Virginia Athletic Conference Baseball Tournament. The stadium, known as Lancers Stadium from its 1994 opening until 2009, was renamed Charles "Buddy" Bolding Stadium in October 2009.

Renovations

In 2007, the university added stadium lighting and a new drainage system and in 2008, it constructed a new team clubhouse.

Naming

The stadium is named for Charles "Buddy" Bolding, Longwood's head baseball coach from 1978 through 2013. The field was dedicated to Bolding, October 3, 2009. During Bolding's tenure the Lancers have qualified for six NCAA Division II baseball tournaments and reached the Division II College World Series twice (1982, 1991).

Replacement

The Longwood University master plan states that by 2025 Bolding Stadium should be replaced with a new park north of campus, adjacent to

High Bridge Trail State Park High Bridge Trail State Park is a rail trail in Southside Virginia converted from a rail line last belonging to Norfolk Southern. The first section of the High Bridge Trail opened in 2008 and the final section was completed in 2012. With a leng ...

. The stadium is also planned to be used by a Minor League Baseball affiliate.

References

{{Virginia NCAA Division I college baseball venue navbox College baseball venues in the United States Baseball venues in Virginia Longwood Lancers baseball Buildings and structures in Prince Edward County, Virginia

History

Renovations

Naming

Replacement

See also

References