BOSTON, Mass.—UMass Boston Athletics has enjoyed an incredible start to the 21st century. Over the past two decades, the Beacons have reached new milestones on-and-off the field.
 
Starting on October 30th, UMass Boston Athletics is proud to begin releasing the department's "Top 20 Moments of the 2000s." Each week, we will feature a new significant or historic moment for the athletics department. For each moment, we will interview two to three Beacons who were present for that moment to give an insightful look into what that moment meant for them and athletics. The moments will be released in chronological order beginning this week.  
 
From Homeless to the Penthouse: Monan Park Opens in 2016 
 
For decades, UMass Boston traveled all over the Greater Boston area to play their "home games" on fields they'd never had the chance to practice on. The team experienced occasional success, including a run to the College World Series in 2010, but struggled to find any consistency, as they never got the chance to play with a true "home-field advantage." 
 
That all changed in 2016. After over a decade of rumblings about a state-of-the-art field right on campus, UMass Boston and neighboring Boston College High School formally broke ground on J. Donald Monan, SJ Park on June 11, 2015. The plan was a replica Fenway Park: including a 27-foot "Mini Monster" in left field, a triangle in right-center field, bullpens in right field, all on a turf field with the exact same dimensions as Fenway Park. 
 
Less than nine months later, UMass Boston baseball took the field for their first-ever home game on the Harbor Peninsula. Despite cool temperatures in the Boston area, the Beacons and MIT played in front of a sizable and loud crowd in the first-ever game at Monan Park.
 
After a quiet first four innings, sophomore Sal Frosceno ('18) executed a squeeze bunt to score Kyle Boudrias ('19) for the first-ever run in the fifth inning. Bryan Dupre ('16) stole home on a double-steal later in the inning and Lionel Danielson ('16) and Frosceno tacked on RBI singles to provide the pitching staff all the offense they would need. Five Beacons pitchers combined to shutout the Engineers, with the staff carrying a no-hit bid into the ninth inning. After MIT loaded the bases in the ninth inning, Steve Consiglio ('16) recorded a strikeout and a pop out to first base to close out the UMass Boston victory. 
 
It was a sign of things to come, as the opening of Monan Park has coincided with the best four-year run in program history. 
 
Since 2016, UMass Boston has posted a 145-53 record overall (73.2 winning percentage)  and a 75-20 mark (78.9 winning percentage) at Monan Park. The Beacons have won their first-two ever Little East Conference Regular Season Titles, became the first program to ever win three-straight LEC Tournament Titles and made it to the Division III NCAA Tournament in every full season since the opening of Monan Park. 
 
That success has also carried over into the NCAA Tournament. The Beacons are 17-9 (65.3 winning percentage) in the NCAA Division III Tournament since 2016, including a 14-5 mark (73.6 winning percentage) in NCAA Regional and Super Regional action. UMass Boston has won at least two NCAA Regional games every season, including making it to the Regional Finals or further from 2017-2019. The Beacons made it to the College World Series for the second and third times in program history in 2017 and 2019 and finished a program-best third overall in 2019. 
 
With one of the best turf fields in the entire country, UMass Boston has also been able to host a number of postseason games, including serving as a fill-in host due to inclement weather. The Beacons hosted the 2016 and 2018 LEC Tournaments and UMass Boston baseball became the first-ever team to play an NCAA Tournament event on campus in 2018, when they hosted two NCAA Regional games. 
 
In 2019, Monan Park was chosen as the host site for the NCAA Regionals and the new NCAA Super Regional Format. While UMass Boston was always going to be a likely host because of the team's strong season, the high-level facilities certainly were an added benefit. 
 
Monan Park has been a revelation for the program. For the first time, players have a space that they can access before and after games, batting cages that are a short walk from on-campus housing and a field that is playable in all but the worst of weather. Instead of never playing with a true "home-field" advantage, the Beacons have consistently hosted extra home games because other team's fields are unplayable. UMass Boston baseball has not only been able to attract higher-level talent but also has seen their retention rates increase. 

In all, it's hard to quantify just how much Monan Park has meant to the success of UMass Boston Baseball. The only certainty, is the Beacons are truly enjoying their first-ever home field.