Prusynski Pitch & Franz Field

Prusynski Pitch (Pru Pitch) is an artificial turf practice field within the Clive Charles Soccer Complex at the University of Portland.  The field is named for Father. Chester Prusynski, C.S.C., who was a big supporter of Pilot Athletics.  Father. Pru was a gentle man with a superb sense of humor and love of sports.  He attended most Pilot soccer, volleyball, basketball and baseball games.  Father Pru passed away on Sunday, April 22, 2012, at Holy Cross House in Notre Dame, Indiana at the age of 91. 

Pru Pitch is managed by Athletics and Recreation and is available to University of Portland athletes and intramural and sport club participants on a reservation basis.  The field is not available for rental.

Franz Fields at River Campus
There are two fields at the UP River campus.  One is a grass practice field for Pilot Soccer.  The second field is artificial turf and is used for Intramural Sports and the Sports Club program.  The fields are not available for rent.

More on Father Pru:
Father Chester Prusynski, CSC, was born May 16, 1920, in Rapids, Wis. After graduating from Lincoln High School, he entered the United States Army. He graduated from Marquette University in Milwaukee in 1950. He later received a master’s degree in business education from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wis., in 1953. In 1956, he joined the Congregation of Holy Cross when he entered Sacred Heart Novitiate in Jordan, Minn., and made his First Vows there a year later. After a year at Moreau Seminary, Notre Dame, Ind., and four years of studying theology at Holy Cross College in Washington, D.C., he was ordained to the priesthood on May 26, 1962 in The Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, Milwaukee. Following a year in the pastoral apprenticeship program at the University of Notre Dame, a year of teaching and prefecting in a student residence hall, Fr. Prusynski was assigned to the University of Portland, in 1964. During his long service, he taught accounting, served on the Board of Regents and became a steward of the local Holy Cross Community. He also assisted in various parishes in the Portland area.