Stabler Arena

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Stabler Arena
Stabler Arena Interior.jpg
Location124 Goodman Drive
Bethlehem, PA 18015
Coordinates40°35′4″N 75°21′25″W / 40.58444°N 75.35694°W / 40.58444; -75.35694Coordinates: 40°35′4″N 75°21′25″W / 40.58444°N 75.35694°W / 40.58444; -75.35694
OwnerLehigh University
OperatorLehigh University
CapacityConcerts: 6,200 Basketball: 5,600
OpenedMay 29, 1979
Tenants
Lehigh Mountain Hawks (NCAA) (1979–present)
Pennsylvania ValleyDawgs (USBL) (1999–200?)
Lehigh Valley Outlawz (GLIFL/CIFL) (2006–2008)
Lehigh Valley Steelhawks (IFL/PIFL) (2011–2014)

Stabler Arena is a 6,200-seat multi-purpose arena in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Owned and operated by Lehigh University, it is located on the school's Goodman Campus. It was named for Donald B. Stabler, a 1930 Lehigh graduate, founder of Stabler Companies Inc., and a member of the university's Board of Trustees for over 30 years. He and his wife, Dorothy, were the primary donors for the facility.[1] The arena officially opened with Lehigh's Commencement Exercises on May 29, 1979, replacing , which had hosted Lehigh athletics since 1914. Its first public event was Holiday on Ice in November later that same year.[2]

Athletics[]

Stabler Arena is home to the Lehigh University Mountain Hawks basketball teams, who play in the NCAA Division I Patriot League. Stabler was also home to two indoor football teams, the Lehigh Valley Outlawz and the Lehigh Valley Steelhawks and the Pennsylvania ValleyDawgs basketball team.

Stabler also has hosted ABC's Wide World of Sports and the U.S. Women's gymnastics finals.

Music[]

Because of the arena's reputation for exceptional acoustics and lively audiences, some musical acts have kicked off their U.S. concert tours at Stabler. These include: The Cranberries, Grateful Dead, KISS, Bette Midler & The Moody Blues. The Grateful Dead played at the Stabler Arena on September 25, 1981. Nirvana played at the Stabler Arena on November 9, 1993. Judas Priest kicked off their 1982 World Vengeance Tour at Stabler.

Renovations and Upgrades[]

In the fall of 2016, brand new LED video boards measuring 10 feet (3.0 m) tall and 17 feet (5.2 m) wide were installed in two corners of the arena. A new LED scorer's table was added, along with two new competition baskets with three-sided shot clocks, and two fixed digit scoreboards were installed in time for the start of the 2016-17 basketball season. The arena also debuted a new baseline club, a court-level area behind one of the baskets that features high-top tables.

The entrance to Stabler Arena.

In the summer of 2017, the arena received a new basketball floor.[2]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Lehigh Receives Largest Gift in its History Lehigh University, Saturday, May 31, 2008.
  2. ^ a b "Stabler Arena - Facilities - Lehigh University". Lehigh University Athletics.

External links[]

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