Copeland Park
The UW-La Crosse baseball team plays its home games at Copeland Park, located at 800 Copeland Avenue in La Crosse. It is also the home of the La Crosse Loggers Baseball Team, a member of the Northwoods League. The Loggers inaugural season at Copeland Park, a City of La Crosse owned facility, was in 2003. UW-La Crosse began playing its home schedule at Copeland Park in 2014. The Eagles are 129-48 (.729) in home games at Copeland Park, including 20-4 in 2015 and 22-2 in 2016.
Copeland Park Google Map
Copeland Park Photo Gallery
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) awarded UW-La Crosse the bid to host the 2015, 2016, 2023 and 2024 NCAA Division III Regionals. UW-La Crosse hosted the NCAA Division III Super Regionals in 2023. UW-La Crosse, one of eight regional sites, captured its first NCAA III Regional title in 2015 to secure its first trip to the NCAA Division III Championships. The Eagles advanced to the 2015 national championship finals in Appleton, Wisconsin, after a pair of victories over Coe College (Iowa) at Copeland Park.
The Eagles secured their second straight trip to the NCAA Division III Championships in 2016 as they went 4-0 in the NCAA III Midwest Regional at Copeland Park. UW-La Crosse advanced to the national championships with a win over Saint John's University (Minn.).
The team also advanced to the NCAA Division III Championships in 2023 after winning the regional crown at Copeland Park with a 3-1 record and capturing the NCAA Division III Super Regional with a three-game series victory over UW-Stevens Point.
UW-La Crosse hosted the 2016 Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) Tournament at Copeland Park, capturing the league title with a 3-0 record.
Copeland Park includes an artificial turf playing surface on the infield, in foul territory, and on the warning track. A video board was installed in spring 2014 and the dugouts were renovated. In 2017, two new buildings housing a ticket booth, retail store, permanent restrooms and expanded concessions as well a renovated and expanded front entrance were created to form a courtyard atmosphere. Dimensions at Copeland Park include 325 to left field, 365 to center field and 315 to right field.
The La Crosse Loggers are members of the 22-team Northwoods League, a summer baseball league comprised of teams of the top college players from across the nation and North America. All players in the league must have NCAA eligibility remaining in order to participate. Players are not paid (this preserves their NCAA eligibility). Each team is operated similar to a professional minor league team, providing players an opportunity to play under the same conditions using wooden bats, minor league specification baseballs, experiencing overnight road trips, and playing nightly before fans in a stadium.
Copeland Park hosts approximately 200 events each year, including more than 125 games not involving the La Crosse Loggers or UW-La Crosse. Other major users include La Crosse Central High School, Western Technical College, American Legion baseball, and the Stars of Tomorrow. Other local high schools and youth leagues also make significant use of the facility. The Copeland Park & Events Center hosts concerts and other events at the facility.
In May 2012, UW-La Crosse Intercollegiate Athletics and the La Crosse Loggers announced a new partnership. The Loggers agreed to provide an annual donation to support UW-La Crosse baseball, which had university funding for its head coaching position terminated in 2009. In exchange, UW-La Crosse agreed to assist the Loggers in raising funds for needed improvements at Copeland Park.
