Photos by Eric Moreno, Stadium Journey
Stadium Info FANFARE Score: 2.86
Park West Athletics Complex 8000 TX-1604 Loop San Antonio, TX 78249
Year Opened: 2013
Capacity: 1,000
UTSA Roadrunners – Park West Athletics Complex
The University of Texas San Antonio (UTSA) was founded just over a half-century ago in 1969. They started their athletics programs not too long after that, including their women’s sports. Over the years, as UTSA has grown, so has the athletics department.
In 2006, the Roadrunners fielded their first women’s soccer team. Fresh off of winning the Southland Conference for the first time in 2010, UTSA partnered with the City of San Antonio and Bexar County to open Park West Athletics Complex. The school would win one more conference title in 2002, their final year in Conference USA.
Partially to cap off the school’s move to the American Athletics Conference (AAC), UTSA unveiled upgrades to Park West, including a brand-new fieldhouse. The $8 million, 14,325 square-foot facility includes a multipurpose community room, locker rooms, team lounges, a sports medicine center, and equipment area – the shine is still highly visible at Park West. Read on to learn more about what UTSA’s facility has to offer.
Food & Beverage 3
Park West offers one main concession stand for fans. It is located near the main entrance to the complex and offers up the vast majority of your traditional game day fare. This includes hot dogs (either plain or with chili and cheese), nachos (which can also be gussied up with chili), and Frito pie. You can also get boxes of candy and popcorn, along with bottled sodas, water, and sports drinks.
Also, Park West offers alcoholic beverages, such as beer and hard seltzers, for those interested. This is a cashless facility, so consider that when heading to a game.
Atmosphere 2
The surroundings are pretty sparse at Park West, which I’m sure will improve over time once the rest of UTSA’s athletics expansion/construction in the area is done. What is available now is a lot of UTSA signage, including banners proclaiming the soccer team’s two titles and a lot of themed games. For example, I attended a contest recently where the program honored first responders; the local fire department brought out trucks and booths and was around for photo opportunities.
UTSA also gave out programs, posters, and hand fans instead of a merchandise tent or booth. Those hand fans, FYI, were a great idea, as my one complaint for the area is the lack of shade available for fans in the stands.
There is an unforgiving heat in South Texas during the early months of the soccer season, and that is expounded exponentially when sitting on metal bleachers. Fans looking to escape the brutal sun had to find shelter underneath the stands, away from the action – this is something to bear in mind when attending a Roadrunners soccer game.
Neighborhood 4
Park West Athletics Complex is at the far west, of course, end of UTSA’s main campus. The soccer pitch and track and field stadium share a facility, which is something to keep in mind when the season starts. It’s also about a seven-minute drive from the Historic Convocation Center, home to UTSA men’s and women’s basketball and volleyball, and Roadrunner Field, home to UTSA baseball – catching a game at one of these during your soccer visit is something to keep in mind as a possibility.
In terms of attractions, UTSA’s main campus is right across the highway, literally, from both Six Flags Fiesta Texas theme park and the Shops at La Cantera. Fiesta Texas is the largest theme park in the region and home to an iconic host of rollercoasters, such as the Iron Rattler. It also has themed events, such as its Howl-o-Scream festivities during the spooky season; it is one of the most popular attractions in Alamo City and is easily accessible from UTSA.
The Shops are one of the city’s high-end collections of vendors – think Gucci, Cartier, Nieman Marcus, etc. If shopping is your passion, you will love the Shops at La Cantera. It is also home to some of the nicest restaurants in that area of San Antonio, such as Palenque Grill, an upscale Mexican food restaurant, and Perry’s Steakhouse & Grille, which, as its name implies, is a high-end steakhouse. There are also plenty of other options that are sure to fit your budget and tastes.
Because the athletics facilities are on campus, there aren’t any lodging options within walking distance of Park West. However, just across Loop 1604, you’ll find plenty of options, making your drives to Roadrunner soccer matches just under 10 minutes long. Options include DoubleTree by Hilton San Antonio Northwest and Spark by Hilton San Antonio Northwest near Six Flags, but as mentioned above, there are numerous other options nearby, with only your budget serving as a limitation.
Fans 2
For transparency’s sake, I will admit that I am a UTSA alum and an avid fan of all Roadrunners sports. With that said, I was slightly disappointed by the crowd that came out to the most recent soccer game I attended – I will admit it was a weekend afternoon game, however, when a certain professional football team from the northern part of Texas was playing, which might have played into the sparseness of the crowd.
With that said, UTSA soccer has been a successful program in recent history; I will say that a large swath of the crowd was there to support the opposing team. Again, this is all anecdotal, but the eye test showed me that there is still plenty of room for growth in terms of fan support here.
Access 4
You can get to UTSA Main Campus and Park West Athletics Complex from any point in the Alamo City using Interstate 10 and Loop 1604; it is a 20-minute drive from San Antonio International Airport. The city’s public transportation option, VIA Metropolitan Transit, also offers multiple routes to and from the UTSA campus during the day if you choose not to drive.
Once you get to Park West, parking is free and plentiful. The campus is also clearly marked from the highways, so you should have no problems on your journey to UTSA.
Return on Investment 3
Admission to UTSA Roadrunners women’s soccer is free, and parking at Park West Athletics Complex is also free. Also, playing in the AAC offers fans of UTSA the ability to see some pretty high-end collegiate competition – getting to see that for free is a bargain that is pretty hard to beat.
The only factors keeping the score here from being higher are a lack of extra game day amenities (more on that shortly), as well as that few of UTSA’s big-name non-conference opponents make it to Park West for games – more often than not if UTSA is playing a Power 4 school they are doing it on the road.
Extras 2
The Spirit of San Antonio (SoSA) marching band has a presence at UTSA soccer games. They can be heard performing in the stands throughout matches, and you can also find UTSA’s mascot, Rowdy, patrolling the sidelines and stands throughout games here, taking photos and just being genuinely fun. There is not much else in terms of Extras at Park West for now.
Final Thoughts
If you’re a soccer fan, you will enjoy yourself at UTSA matches at Park West Athletics Complex. It’s a good venue for the sport, and it will eventually be an even better venue for fans. If you are in the area, you would be hard-pressed to find a more affordable way to spend an afternoon or an evening. It’s not a bucket list place yet, but Park West could be a top collegiate venue in the not-too-distant future, so get in while you can.
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Follow Eric Moreno’s Stadium Journey on X at @EricMoreno6477.
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