ST. LOUIS – Saint Louis University's field hockey campaign officially begins this week, a historic season marking the Billikens' return to an on-campus facility for the first time since 1998.
 
The new Billiken Field Hockey Complex is located along Chouteau Avenue, adjacent to SLU track and field's Medical Center Recreation Complex. It includes a state-of-the art synthetic turf playing surface that will be Billiken blue in color with a green border. Surrounding the field are six high-pressure water cannons, which will water the field prior to and at halftime of matches to ensure the best playability. Bleachers accommodating a capacity of 300 fans are located on the south side of the field.
 
SLU's first match at the new facility will be held Friday, Aug. 30, at 1 p.m. against Central Michigan. Additional fan information will be provided later in the week.
 
In addition to the opener against Central Michigan, the Bills play nonconference home matches against Bellarmine (Sept. 1), Ball State (Sept. 8), Frostburg State (Sept. 22) and Maryville (Oct. 27). SLU travels in nonconference play to Ohio (Sept. 15), Sacred Heart (Sept. 29) and Stonehill (Oct. 6).
 
Atlantic 10 Conference play gets underway on Sept. 20 when the Billikens host Richmond. Other A-10 home games are against Davidson (Oct. 11) and Saint Joseph's (Oct. 25).
 
SLU travels in A-10 play to face La Salle (Sept. 27), UMass (Oct. 4), VCU (Oct. 18) and Lock Haven (Nov. 1).
 
The full schedule can be found here.