Achilles Rink

Coordinates: 42°49′05″N 73°55′29″W / 42.817991°N 73.924813°W / 42.817991; -73.924813

Frank L. Messa Rink at Achilles Center
Construction

Former names	Achilles Rink (1975-2003)
Location	807 Union Street Schenectady, New York
Owner	Union College
Operator	Union College
Capacity	2,225 (hockey)
Surface	201x86 ft (hockey)
Broke ground	November 2, 1974
Opened	November 15, 1975
Renovated	2003
Construction cost	$1.5 million
Architect	Link and Cullen Architects (Schenectady, NY)
General contractor	Hanson Construction Co.
Tenants
Union College Dutchmen (men's and women's hockey)

The Frank L. Messa Rink at Achilles Center is a 2,225-seat multi-purpose arena in Schenectady, New York. It is home to the Union College Dutchmen ice hockey and Dutchwomen ice hockey teams, members of the ECAC Hockey League. The facility opened in 1975 as Achilles Rink and was named in honor of its original benefactor, the Rev. H. Laurence Achilles, Sr. In 2003, it was renovated and renamed Frank L. Messa Rink at Achilles Center in honor of Frank L. Messa, class of 1973, whose generosity made the renovation possible. One of the unique and distinguishing features of the building is its light colored wooden dome roof which is supported by a complex geometric pattern of dark colored wooden beams. The arena also houses the Travis J. Clark '00 Strength Training Facility.

Renovations

During the summer of 2003, the rink underwent phase 1 of a $1.5 million renovation after a gift from alumnus Frank L. Messa '73. Renamed Frank L. Messa Rink at Achilles Center, the renovated facility was officially unveiled for competition on October 18, 2003. Improvements included a new ice sheet with state of the art chilling system, improved climate control, spring loaded boards, seamless glass, new overhead center scoreboard, reconfigured penalty boxes, more spacious aisles, and seating with improved sight lines. Seating capacity was reduced from 2,504 to 2,225 to accommodate the changes. Phase 2 of the project was completed during the 2003-2004 academic year and included construction of new locker rooms, a reconfigured lobby, a sports medicine area, and training facility.^[1]

On January 2016, a $10 million renovation plan for Achilles Center was announced by Union College Athletic Director Jim McLaughlin. The list of improvements for the project includes: New ice sheet floor, sideboards & glass, new main entrance at south side of rink, new video scoreboard, new seating, new concession stands, new restroom facilities, new coaches offices and new hospitality room with views of the rink and football field. Fundraising for the project has been approved but a time line for start of construction has not yet been announced.^[2]

Notable facts

On March 12, 2010, Quinnipiac University beat Union College 3-2 in the longest game in NCAA history. Greg Holt scored at 10:22 of the 5th overtime. The game took 150:22 to decide the winner. The box score can be found at http://collegehockeystats.net/0910/boxes/mquiuni1.m12.^[3]^[4]
It has also played host to the 2nd longest NCAA men's ice hockey game in NCAA history. It occurred on March 4, 2006, in Game 2 of the ECAC Tournament First Round best of three series between Yale University and Union. Yale won 3-2 at 1:35 into the 5th overtime. The game, overall, took 141:35 to decide the winner.^[5]^[6]
When the rink was first constructed, College officials planned to convert the rink into 4 tennis courts during the spring and fall seasons.^[7]
There used to be four sheets of curling ice underneath the hockey rink as H. Laurence Achilles was an avid supporter of the sport of curling. The curling rink has since been used for other purposes.
The facility has hosted various rock concerts and musical acts including "The Ramones" on May 29, 1982, "Phish" on May 17, 1992, "Indigo Girls" on April 25,1994 and "Green Day" May 10, 1998.

References

↑ http://www.unionathletics.com/documents/2008/10/15/07_About%20Union.pdf
↑ http://www.dailygazette.com/news/2016/feb/07/0207_unionrink/?dgzrg
↑ "Quinnipiac at Union - Friday, March 12, 2010". collegehockeystats.net. Retrieved 2010-03-13.
↑ "College Hockey News: Almanac ... Longest Games". collegehockeynews.com. Retrieved 2016-04-19.
↑ "Yale at Union - Saturday, March 4, 2006". collegehockeystats.net. Retrieved 2010-01-09.
↑ "College Hockey News: Almanac ... Longest Games". collegehockeynews.com. Retrieved 2016-04-19.
↑ Union College Concordiensis 1973

Union College

Presidents	Smith Edwards Maxcy Nott Hickok Aiken Potter Webster Raymond Richmond Day Fox Davidson Martin Bonner Morris Hull Ainlay

Other people	List of alumni Eliphalet Nott Joseph Jacques Ramée (campus architect)

Academics	Development of the Curriculum Academic Program Undergraduate Research Study Abroad Rankings

Culture	History Song to Old Union Arts and Culture Concordiensis (student paper) WRUC (student radio station) Minerva System Fraternity and Sorority Life Men's Glee Club

Campus	Nott Memorial (National Historic Landmark) Schaffer Library Campus design Landmarks Theme Houses Achilles Rink

Athletics	Athletics Men's Ice Hockey Women's Ice Hockey

ECAC Hockey

Teams	Brown Bears men women Clarkson Golden Knights men women Colgate Raiders men women Cornell Big Red men women Dartmouth Big Green men women Harvard Crimson men women Princeton Tigers men women Quinnipiac Bobcats men women Rensselaer Engineers men women St. Lawrence Saints men women Union Dutchmen men women Yale Bulldogs men women

Venues	Meehan Auditorium (Brown) Cheel Arena (Clarkson) Class of 1965 Arena (Colgate) Lynah Rink (Cornell) Thompson Arena (Dartmouth) Bright Hockey Center (Harvard) Hobey Baker Memorial Rink (Princeton) TD Bank Sports Center (Quinnipiac) Houston Field House (Rensselaer) Appleton Arena (St. Lawrence) Achilles Rink (Union) Ingalls Rink (Yale) Boardwalk Hall (Men's tournament)

Championships & awards	Men's champions Women's champions Player of the Year Rookie of the Year Coach of the Year Best Defensive Defenseman Best Defensive Forward Ken Dryden Award Student-Athlete of the Year Most Outstanding Player in Tournament

Union Dutchmen ice hockey

Formerly the Union Skating Dutchmen

Playing venues	Achilles Rink (1975–present)

Head coaches	Ambrose Clark (1919–1920, 1921–1924) Henry Gardner (1924–1925) H. A. Larrabee (1925–1930) William Harkness (1930–1933) H. L. Achilles (1933–1935) Art Lawrence (1935–1936, 1940–1942, 1947–1949) Duke Nelson (1936–1940) Ned Harkness (1975–1977) Bob Driscoll (1978) Charles Morrison (1978–1988) Bruce Delventhal (1988–1996) Stan Moore (1996–1998) Kevin Sneddon (1998–2003) Nate Leaman (2003–2011) Rick Bennett (2011–present)

Seasons	2013–14

Conference affiliations	ECAC West (1975–1991) ECAC Hockey (1991–present)

Rivalries	RPI Engineers

National championships	2014

Frozen Four appearances	2012 2014

NCAA Tournament appearances	2011 2012 2013 2014

Conference Tournament champions	ECAC: 2012 2013 2014

Union College Schenectady, NY

Union Dutchwomen ice hockey

Playing venues	Achilles Rink

Head coaches	Fred Quistgard (1999–2004) Tim Gerrish (2004–2007) Claudia Asano (2007–)

Seasons	2009–10 2010–11 2011–12

Conference affiliations	ECAC Hockey (ECAC)

Rivalries	RPI Engineers

Union College Schenectady, NY

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