Calhoun, Ga -
Saint Mary's college is a Division I school with a highly competitive athletic program, wide range of sports programs, and state-of-the-art facilities. The college recently installed Shaw Sports Turf's newest turf system, GameOn.
MORAGA, Calif., Feb. 8, 2024 -- Saint Mary's College of California, located in Contra Costa County, just 23 miles east of San Francisco, is a private Catholic college established in 1863. As one of the top five regional universities in the west, Saint Mary's is known for its many excellent academic and athletic programs. Saint Mary's college is a Division I school with a highly competitive athletic program, wide range of sports programs, and state-of-the-art facilities. The college recently installed Shaw Sports Turf's newest turf system, GameOn.
Recreational Turf Field is a cornerstone facility for the college, a field which is primarily used for soccer and lacrosse. During COVID, however, the already dated and weathered turf field was transitioned for use as an outdoor classroom. "The outdoor classrooms had pavilions on the surface from August of 2020 to March of 2023," said Rebeca Harper, Director of Campus Recreation and Club Sports. "The outdoor set up allowed us to have in-person classes during the pandemic, as most colleges were not meeting in person, and Saint Mary's felt the need to be able to meet in-person, but the large, heavy cement blocks caused damage to the field."
When the decision was made to replace the existing turf on Recreational Turf Field, the school chose Shaw Sports Turf for their reputation as a trusted vendor in the area and previous experience completing other various projects at Saint Mary's. The experience working with Shaw was simple and flexible as Shaw was able to meet the various budget needs and contract processes required of the school. "Through the process, Shaw was patient and understanding. This allowed us to be thorough with decision making and timelines," said Harper.
Recreational Sports Field is used for many other sports, events, and activities in addition to soccer and lacrosse. The sports field is a staple for the school's athletic programs, and symbol of school pride. As a result, Shaw recommended the new and innovative GameOn turf system to meet the performance demands of the school, as well as their robust school pride.
Shaw Sports Turf installed 94,012 square feet of the new GameOn Hybrid 2.0" turf system.
The revolutionary GameOn turf system is an innovative product that allows for enhanced design capabilities in conjunction with increased performance, as lines, numbers, hash marks, and logos are tufted together in one run, limiting the number of seams on your field. These advancements allow for enhanced design capabilities, increased branding opportunities, and a higher level of performance.
With a traditional synthetic turf playing surface, details like numbers and hash marks are cut and then glued or sewn into the field; these pieces are referred to as inlays. Though this method is secure and accepted, the potential for the inlays to come apart is a concern and something that maintenance crews everywhere have to deal with. GameOn creates a completely new way to look at field design and eliminates this concern making maintenance easier as well as elevating the overall performance of the field with less cut in areas.
Enhancing the field's logos, graphics, and messaging, from field of play, to endzones, to D-zones, Shaw Sports Turf can tuft your brand and create an impressive, high-performance field that embodies your school pride with GameOn.
Now, with the new turf field, the school's club sports can return to playing competitions on their very own home field.
"We were excited to be a part of GameOn Turf System. The values of adding this extend past our reach of the simple day to day use. We can send brand awareness to the users, spectators, and guests," said Harper.
The replacement turf project was completed on December 18th, 2023, and the school and community have been teeming with excitement to get out on the updated Shaw Sports Turf GameOn turf. In fact, Harper reports over 120 reservations in place for the newly surfaced field in the month of January alone. The first competition is set for February 17, 2024.
"The foundation, which wishes to remain anonymous, provided $500,000 toward the restoration of the field," said Harper. Future endeavors for the college include Saint Mary's Stadium, which is right next to the turf field.
"We are honored to have the opportunity to partner with Saint Mary's College in the installation of the new Shaw Sports Turf Game On Revolutionary Turf System. We look forward to watching this college reap the benefits of a high quality, dual fiber tufted in technology for increased performance, a turf system that will provide great playability for their multisport playing field," said Shaw Sports Turf, Territory Manager, Matt Cohen.
ABOUT SHAW SPORTS TURF
A wholly-owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., Shaw Industries is a full flooring provider to the residential and commercial markets. Shaw supplies carpet, hardwood, laminate, resilient, and tile/ stone flooring products, as well as synthetic turf. Shaw Sports Turf is one of the leading synthetic turf companies in North America and has represented quality and innovation for more than two decades with over 4,000 successful installations, including an impressive list of high-profile field installations. For more information, please visit http://www.shawsportsturf.com, call 866-703-4004 or find us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram.
Media Contact
Jennifer MUSE, Shaw Sports Turf, 7068793643, jennifer.muse@shawinc.com, www.shawsportsturf.com