Yvette Girouard Field at Lamson Park is a ballpark located on the South Campus of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in Lafayette, Louisiana. Originally built in 1985, Lamson Park is the home of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette's Ragin' Cajuns softball program. When Lady Cajun's Park was built, the Softball program had no budget, no money, and no stable foundation. Now, Cajuns softball is known as a national powerhouse, year after year, and Lamson Park continues to grow.[2]
The stadium went through a $2.1 million renovation from 2009 to 2011, which included a mostly-covered grandstand between dugouts, three private luxury suites, and a 50-seat Stadium Club. Additional seating was also added beyond the outfield fence, bringing it to its current capacity of 2,790.[3]
The 2011 renovations also included a new and larger press box with three broadcast booths, a larger and more functional locker room, a technology-driven meeting room and a new scoreboard in right field that debuted in 2010. The video board from 2010 was replaced in February 2020, with a new 30-ft screen.[4]
Finally, a state-of-the-art indoor hitting facility was completed in 2016. The structure is located in the left field corner and includes a total of 12 cages, which are mounted on zip lines so that they can be retracted to open up the facility for infield drills and/or pitching instruction.
In 2019, a new artificial field turf was installed by GeoSurfaces at the commencement of the season.
Lamson Park routinely ranks in the top-ten nationally both in attendance, as well as atmosphere.[5][6] A new attendance record was established on February 15, 2020, with 3,107 in attendance to watch UL defeat LSU by a score of 2–1. The game also marked the 100th win for Coach Glasco.[7]
In terms of official seating capacity, Lamson Park is the largest softball stadium in the Sun Belt Conference and in Louisiana. In terms of overall stadium size and area it is smaller than others in Louisiana.[8]
Ms. Girouard founded the program in 1981, going on to secure a 759–250 record during her tenure as head coach, which lasted from 1982 to 2000. She also had 19 consecutive winning seasons.[9]
Since its inception, Lamson Park has hosted numerous major postseason events, including: