Fairfield University has announced it will name its new 85,000-square foot arena the Leo D. Mahoney Arena. The new venue, which will officially open in November, replaces the institution’s long-standing landmark Alumni Hall.
The arena”™s namesake was co-founder of Eastern Minerals Inc., a road salt supplier based in Lowell, Massachusetts, who serves as a member of the university”™s trustees advisory council during the early 1990s. His daughter Shelagh Mahoney-McNamee, who graduated from the school in 1987, is a member of the board of trustees and offered a financial gift that was described by the school as “the single largest by an alumna in the university”™s history.”
“It is an honor to be a part of this new chapter in Fairfield”™s history,” said Mahoney-McNamee. “I am grateful for the opportunity to give back to my alma mater, that has given me so much both personally and professionally, and to honor my father, with this dedication.”
The new 3,500-seat arena will be used for basketball and volleyball games, university events and concerts. The Fairfield Women”™s Basketball program will open the 2022-23 season against Stonehill College in Mahoney Arena on Nov. 18, while the Fairfield Men”™s Basketball program will play their first game in Mahoney Arena on Dec. 3 against Saint Peter”™s University.
