James G. Pressly Stadium
[NOTE: All Florida soccer home action moved to the Donald R. Dizney Stadium beginning in the 2018 season. In the 2014-17 seasons, Florida used both Dizney and Pressly Stadiums as home venues.]
The Gator soccer team played most of its home action at the James G. Pressly Stadium at Percy Beard Track. Florida’s amassed a home record of 199-32-12 (.844) in its 23-year history playing at the stadium.
An overflow crowd of 5,222 filled the Pressly Stadium complex when Florida and then No. 1-North Carolina met on Oct. 11, 1998 for one of the top regular-season matches of the 1998 season. That crowd was the second largest regular-season crowd of the 1998 women’s soccer season and ranks as the 15th largest among the nation’s all-time regular-season crowds. Florida opened the 1999 season with another overflow crowd, when 4,745 fans joined in the pre-match festivities, which included the unveiling of the NCAA Championship sign. That attendance also stands among the nation’s top 30 all-time regular-season crowds.
JAMES G. PRESSLY STADIUM FACTS
- Location: James G. Pressly Stadium is located at the corner of SW 2nd Ave. and Woodlawn Dr. on the University of Florida campus in Gainesville.
- Seating capacity: 4,500.
- Dimensions: 70 by 115 yards.
- Surface: Natural grass Tifway 419 Bermuda blend
- Direction: North and South
- Spring & Summer of 1995: $2,000,000 facelift so facility could accommodate soccer
- Spring of 1997: Lights added $164,980
- Spring of 2007: $100,000 upgrades to Daktronics scoreboard
- General Contractor: M Gay Constructors Inc., Jacksonville, Fla.
JAMES G. PRESSLY STADIUM LIGHTS
- Area of Lighting: Six poles with a total of 94 1,500 watt Metal Halide fixtures
- Pole Count: Six poles, three behind each sideline
- Light Fixtures: Musco SportsCluster 2 1,500 watt
- Standard Musco Reflector
- Mounting Height: 70'
- Manufacturer & Design: Musco Lighting LLC, Oskaloosa, Iowa
- General Contractor: M Gay Constructors Inc., Jacksonville, Fla.
Pressly Stadium was the site of the 1997 Southeastern Conference Tournament and the UF-Vanderbilt championship match drew a SEC record crowd of 2,520. Florida played host to NCAA First, Second and Third Round action in 2012, the 14th time in the program's 18-year history that NCAA play was held at Pressly Stadium.
Lights were added to the stadium for the 1997 season and the first night match played at Pressly Stadium versus SEC rival Kentucky drew the tenth-largest crowd in school history of 3,425.
During the spring and summer of 1995, the stadium underwent a major $2 million facelift so that the facility could accommodate soccer. In order to meet specifications, the pole vault and long jump pits were moved from the infield to outside of the track, providing the new soccer field with a playing area of approximately 115 yards by 70 yards. In addition to redesigning the infield, 2,500 aluminum seats were added to the already existing 2,000-seat concrete grandstand, bringing total grandstand capacity to 4,500.
The renovation effort also included adding new restrooms, permanent concession stands, ticket booths, storage rooms and an air-conditioned split-level pressbox. In the spring of 2007, the scoreboard in the stadium's southeast corner was updated. A Daktronics scoreboard using the latest in LED technology cost was added at a cost of approximately $100,000 and serves both UF's soccer and track and field teams.
The stadium was named the James G. Pressly Stadium at Percy Beard Track in the spring of 2004 following a generous gift from James G. Pressly, a West Palm Beach attorney and a 1972 graduate of the UF College of Law. The track has long held the name Percy Beard Track after the former Gator head track & field coach Percy Beard, who guided the Gators from 1937 to 1964.
Pressly Stadium is located adjacent to Florida's Lemerand Athletic Center. This multistory 43,000 square foot building, which opened in August of 1995, contains the locker room, equipment storage, training and sports medicine plus coaches' offices for the Gator soccer team. The Lemerand Athletic Center underwent more than $1,400,000 in renovations in 2006 and among the end results is a more spacious locker room for the Gator soccer team.
The Gator soccer team has exclusive use of a practice field which is located just east of the Donald R. Dizney Stadium. Lights on the field will enable the Gators to practice whenever it is convenient for the team. The practice field is located near the Katie Seashole Pressly Softball Stadium on the corners of Hull and Museum Roads on the UF campus.
All-Time Top 10 James G. Pressly Stadium Soccer Crowds
| Rank | Opponent | Crowd | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | North Carolina | 5,222 | 10/11/98 |
| 2. | Florida State | 4,745 | 8/27/99 |
| 3. | Florida State | 4,671 | 9/9/11 |
| 4. | Florida State | 4,442 | 9/2/95 |
| 5. | Florida State | 4,279 | 8/30/13 |
| 6 | Georgia | 3,859 | 9/29/06 |
| 7. | Texas Tech | 3,728 | 9/2/11 |
| 8. | Florida State | 3,526 | 9/18/09 |
| 9. | Florida State | 3,472 | 9/28/01 |
| 10. | Florida State | 3,432 | 11/28/03 |
PRESSLY STADIUM TEAM RECORDS:
| Most Goals: | 11 | Florida 11, LSU 0 (9/24/99) |
| Highest combined score: | 11 | Florida 11, LSU 0 (9/24/99) |
PRESSLY STADIUM INDIVIDUAL RECORDS:
| Most Goals: | 4 | Abby Wambach vs. LSU (9/24/99) |
| Sarah Yohe vs. LSU (9/24/99) | ||
| 3 | five players a total of 12 times | |
| Most Points: | 9 | Abby Wambach (4G, 1A) vs. LSU (9/24/99) |
| 8 | Sarah Yohe (4G, 0A) vs. LSU (9/24/99) | |
| Danielle Fotopoulos (3G, 2A) vs. Mississippi (10/18/98) |
