Women's Hockey | 3/20/2013 8:23:00 PM

– The RIT men's and women's hockey teams announced today that they will play their first outdoor games at Rochester's Frontier Field as part of a doubleheader on Saturday, Dec. 14, 2013. The women will play Clarkson University in the opener, while the men will play Niagara University. Game times will be announced at a later date.The RIT games will be a major part of a 10-day festival will take place from Dec. 13 to Dec. 22, 2013, serving as a celebration of hockey spent outdoors in downtown Rochester. The festival begins with a regular season American Hockey League game at Frontier Field between the Rochester Americans and an opponent that will be announced at a later date on Dec. 13. As part of the event at Frontier Field, which is home to Triple-A baseball's Rochester Red Wings of the International League, the downtown ballpark will also host several Section V High School hockey games, an Alumni Game featuring former players from the Amerks and Buffalo Sabres, and community events. Blocks of ice time will be made available to the public for corporate events, private parties and youth/adult hockey practices and games.“We are absolutely thrilled to be part of this wonderful community event,” said RIT Executive Director of Athletics Lou Spiotti. “I speak for all of our coaches and student-athletes when I say that RIT is proud to provide quality collegiate hockey to our fans, alumni and the Rochester community. We are honored to be asked to participate and to have league partner Niagara University and Liberty League partner, Clarkson University join us for this event. We will work very hard to make this a memorable experience for all.”“Monroe County is delighted to host this week filled with winter fun and great hockey at a truly unique location, Frontier Field," said County Executive Maggie Brooks. "I applaud the Rochester Americans and Rochester Red Wings for coordinating what will be a memorable week not just for hockey fans.”“We are extremely excited to work with our community partners in bringing outdoor hockey to Rochester,” said Rochester Americans/Buffalo Sabres President Ted Black. “While the chance to play an outdoor game will be an exciting opportunity for our players and coaches, the event as a whole will allow the entire community to share in a special experience.”“We are thrilled to partner with Monroe County and the Sabres, Amerks, RIT, Section V and Rink Specialists to bring this world class, Big League event to our community,” said President/CEO/COO of Rochester Community Baseball Naomi Silver. “We pride ourselves on creating lifelong memories for our fans and there's no doubt that this event is something that Rochesterians will cherish for a long time.”The outdoor rink will be constructed at Frontier Field by Rink Specialists, a global ice skating rink sales, installation and repair company that provides ongoing operational efficiency and consulting services.While complete ticket information on all events will be available at a later date, the best way to assure tickets to the RIT outdoor games is to become a season ticket holder.For more information, visit www.ritathletics.com . When available, tickets can be purchased at www.rithockey.com or (585) 475-4121.