November 14, 2025
Mansion Park Stadium (Capacity: 10,200)
Altoona, PA
Bishop Guilfoyle Marauders vs Juniata Valley Hornets
Final Score: 61 – 6
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This November trip began in Altoona, a small city in Central Pennsylvania that is the state’s 12th largest with a population of 44,000. Sitting at the base of the Allegheny Mountains, Altoona became “Railroad City” as it was at the center of the industry, specifically the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR). Altoona may still be known for that, but it’s also the headquarters for Sheetz and Boyer (think the Mallo Cup), while also becoming a leading area for health care in the state. Altoona is a place that many high school football players want to reach as District championships are won here each season. In addition to being the home field for local high schools, the 10,200-seat Mansion Park Stadium hosts numerous playoff football games. PIAA runs the sport in this state and it is divided into 6 classifications as the 1A level are the schools with the smallest enrollment and 6A consists of the largest schools. The state is broken into 12 regional districts and District 6 is in the Central and West-Central part of the state, which includes Blair County and the Altoona area. Given that the counties making up District 6 are rural, many of the schools fall in the 1A or 2A classification and those feature 8-team playoff brackets. The championships are all held at Mansion Park Stadium, a simple but large facility that opened in 1929. The following night would feature two teams from Johnstown competing for a District 2A championship, while I was here on a Friday Night to see who would take the 1A crown. Bishop Guilfoyle, from Altoona, has won the most titles of the schools currently at the 1A level and they even won State Titles in ’24 and ’21. Their opponent, Juniata Valley, comes from tiny Alexandria 30 minutes to the west and they were looking for their first District 6 crown since 2018. It was a chilly, but calm night to watch two teams with different aspirations.
Prestige Ranking: 1.5 out of 5
Location
Mansion Park is in the southern portion of Altoona and while some of the neighborhood is made up of fairly close together houses, the section adjacent to the stadium consists of beautiful houses within a wooded setting. The most prominent is the Baker Mansion and it is the namesake for the area. It is open to visitors Friday – Sunday and there’s a small history museum inside. To the west, some commerce lines nearby 6th and 5th Ave, however dining options are limited. By far the best bet is the famed Knickerbocker, which is within relative walking distance to the stadium. The clustered houses along the walk on Burgoon Road is a cool visual and the gastropub has an excellent bar and decent food. As for the rest of Altoona, a sample of the Railroading history is an enjoyable highlight and that can be done at the Railroaders Memorial Museum downtown. I really liked this museum and then followed it up with visiting the striking Horseshoe Curve 10 minutes to the west. The design is better to see from a distance, but the up-close appeal is when it goes from quiet and serene to booming as a train traverses the Curve. I also made sure to try me some Altoona-Style Pizza. This article made me think, mayyyybe it’ll be ok…but no, American Cheese covering the square slices was not my thing.
Location Ranking: 6 out of 10
Accessibility / Parking
I-99 runs North-South on a side of Altoona and the interstate connects with the state’s main east-west thoroughfares in I-80 and the PA Turnpike. Mansion Park Stadium is 5 minutes away from Exit 32 as Union Ave twists towards the neighborhood. The parking situation is disconcerting if you are unfamiliar with coming here or from out of town. Available areas aren’t plentiful as the options are a couple small lots near the west-side bleachers or scattered side of road parking. It wasn’t as bad as I feared as those lots didn’t really fill up until 15 minutes before kickoff. I didn’t have trouble getting in thankfully. Further options include the gravel area beyond the baseball field or the grassy area behind the north end of the stadium (weather permitting). Traffic is a little slow getting out and since people linger after a playoff game, that helped to prevent an immediate jam-up of cars.
Accessibility / Parking Ranking: 6 out of 8
Exterior
To make up for the lack of a stadium structure, there is an entrance area in the southwest corner. The brick columns and iron gates are topped by a decorative sign saying “Altoona Mansion Park”. It’s a welcoming little entrance that is located right next to a ticket office building.
Exterior Ranking: 3.5 out of 10
Concourse
There is a ton of open space around the sideline seating stands and the confines of the grounds includes an additional grass football field, ideal for kids throwing the ball around during the game. Most will congregate in the corner by the main entrance and there’s a few picnic tables in this area by the concession stand. The walkway behind the bleachers is closed off during the game and the small bathrooms are at the beginning of the entrance.
Concourse Ranking: 0.5 out of 5
Food
The concession stand draws a decent crowd throughout the game and the menu isn’t bad as they have the grill going. Hot Dogs, Burgers and Chicken are the main items with meal deals tacking on fries and a drink.
Food Ranking: 3 out of 8
Interior
As you would expect, the seating structure is simplistic as Mansion Park just features a straight pair of sideline bleachers. This allows for it to seat over 10,000 people as the large “home” stands have 30 rows, extending the length from end zone to end zone. The cold bleachers are set on a concrete base and the spacing between each row isn’t quite enough where you can lean and create your own back. Height is good for the sightlines, but both a track and a walkway push the stands away from the football field. Daytime views from this side include spruce trees to the left, a neighborhood with the Baker Mansion to the right and eye-appealing hills in the distance. Over on the other “visitor” side, the bleachers are at a lower row-by-row pitch and on a clanky metal base. Despite being smaller, they still are of decent size in comparison to other high school fields. Both sidelines are topped by a press box, which is pretty cool for those schools looking to broadcast their games. The main sideline features a double-decker press box with the stadium name written in the middle.
Interior Ranking: 3.5 out of 14
Scoreboard
The scoreboard perched up on a brick base behind the north end is decent as it is strictly a video display. That’s certainly not something expected at this level. Game information was clear enough and there are video capabilities, mainly used in a pre-recorded fashion. Clarity, size and distance did make viewing difficult as I couldn’t make much out from the pre-game hype videos.
Scoreboard Ranking: 2.5 out of 4
Displays
A dedication plaque exists for contributors towards a turf and track project. Further down the walkway, a sign honors track champs for Altoona High School. I was surprised to not see displays for their football team. Also absent is anything PIAA or District Championship related.
Displays Ranking: 0.5 out of 6
Cost
Tickets are $8 and concessions are affordable ($2 for a Hot Dog, $6 for a Cheeseburger, $10 for a meal). Parking can be free in several areas, but the lot across the street is $3.
Cost Ranking: 8 out of 8
Fan Support
Of course this will vary given the school that is participating, but overall High School Football in Central and Western PA is well-supported. This may be more true at the 1A and 2A levels, where these championships are held at Mansion Park for Division 6, as some of those schools are from small towns. Friday Night’s can be part of the community fabric and you’ll get more than students and parents at the games. I saw that a little bit at this game as there were at least a few townies that came out and were on the Bishop Guilfoyle sideline stands. Despite being from the “bigger city” in Altoona, it was a decent turnout for the BG side as I’d guess around 1500 were there. On the other side, Juanita Valley had about 500 mostly friends and family.
Fan Support Ranking: 4.5 out of 8
Atmosphere
I started out by sitting with BG fans in the bigger ‘home’ stands and it just felt like an expected win. In no way shape or form was it cockyness or arrogance, but more so in the cheering as it was supportive, but subdued for a title game. It quickly became apparent why (see Game below). Touchdowns, all 9 of them, were celebrated with applause and a little vocal cheering. Defensive noise early on featured some cowbells and milk containers with coins in them. On the other side, the Juniata fans erupted when a few things went there way on the initial couple possessions. Their support was the good side of High School sports, a very welcome refresher after so many scenes of idiot youth sport parents. Here, the fans applauded their team as they came off the field at halftime down 49-0, trying to show encouragement. I heard one parent yell out in the second half “Just have fun _, the score is what it is, this is your last game, enjoy it”. Finally, at the end of the game while BG got their medals and trophy, in the other end zone, the Juniata coach gave a speech and then hugged every single one of his players and staff as their 10-3 season came to an end. Sports, man…it’ll never stop getting to my emotions.
Atmosphere Ranking: 7 out of 14
Other Stuff
The Altoona Area School District owns the stadium and there are also soccer and track events held here. Since it’s not at the High School and it’s more of a city park, the field and track in the stadium are open to the public, along with other nearby courts and fields…..In-game advertising has even reached the High School level. I couldn’t help but chuckle when the annoucer informed us, “(team) has now entered the Sheetz Red Zone!”…Is Notre Dame’s fight song the go-to for high school bands? Maybe it’s easier to play and learn? BG used it here and having gone to games supporting my cheerleading daughter, I’ve heard it plenty in New Jersey as well…..Check out this article from the Altoona Mirror on October 4, 1929 as the new field was about to open in Mansion Park…..In case you’re a wacko crazed sports fan like me and decide to go as a neutral, note that playoff game tickets are NOT sold at the gate. Tickets must be purchased in advance online through the PIAA website…..It’s not common across PA for their to be a consistent host of district championships and state playoff games. Erie’s Veterans Memorial Stadium was a similar one, but combing through years of data, they don’t host every year like Altoona does. Otherwise, various High Schools will become neutral sites for these games.
Game
The feeling of an expected win for Bishop Guilfoyle quickly came to fruition as a 36(!) point second quarter made it 49-0…at halftime. The mercy rule was invoked for the entire second half and it was a 62-6 final as BG took home their 9th district title. They move on to the State Quarterfinals as their main goal is a State title. Jake Kissel ran for 113 yards and had 3 TDs in this one.
Stadium and Arena Visits 
