Softball fields renovated to withstand harsh fall weather

~Thirty-two teams signed up for softball intramurals this fall

Fielding a ball cleanly on the intramural softball fields used to be an issue for any outfielder because the grass was patchy and rough.

The fields got a much needed overhaul over the summer. New grass was planted in the outfields, a new dirt mixture was used on the infields and both were grated to allow for better drainage.

The softball fields, which sit at the corner of Bertling and Sprigg Streets, as well as the upper intramural field used for football, were stripped in May to begin the project and were used for the first time this season on Sept. 15 when the umpires took the field for their final training session.

"They grated the fields so we could get drainage," said Jennifer Rose, assistant director of Recreation Services. "One of our biggest problems on those fields has been water sitting, and so we have one day of rain and we cancel intramurals for a week because they're soaked."

Rose said the fields should now drain off to the sides of the fields toward the creek that sits behind them.

The dirt mixture on the infield also helps with the drying of the fields.

"They got a little bit deeper this summer," Rose said. "They pulled out and redid those infields and then put more of that surface in so it will be a nicer infield playing material, and it will also drain better."

The new infields should not only drain better, but it will provide a better surface to play on as well.

The outfields also were reseeded with a higher-quality grass.

"It's a Bermuda-Rye mix," Rose said. "It's basically what's on the women's collegiate fields."

This grass is faster growing than what was previously planted in the outfields, meaning if a patch of grass is torn up, the surrounding grass will grow and expand to fill that spot.

According to Rose, the softball season started a week later than normal due to the renovations to the playing surface, but that didn't deter the 32 teams that are signed up to play this season. Rose said she estimates that 60 to 70 percent of those teams are returning from last spring.

One of those teams is Ball So Hard, a men's recreational team. Aaron Carroll, the team's manager, is ready to get on the new softball fields.

"I'm really excited because it would rain on Monday and my game on Wednesday -- I was worried like are we going to play or not," Carroll said.

This is Carroll's third year playing intramural softball.

"I don't know how good we'll be, but we'll have a lot of fun," he said.

Carroll, who already has had a chance to play on the football field, said it "was real nice to play on."

The softball season began on Sept. 16 with teams competing in co-recreational and men's divided into three divisions, recreational, Greek and competitive.