“It’s a place where my players can consider their ‘place’ on campus. Every student group should have their ‘place’. Ac Dec has Mrs. Smith’s room. FFA has that Ag Barn area of campus. Theatre students hang out in Mrs. Houghton’s room and the auditorium. The baseball team hangs out and works at the baseball cages and field, year-round. This is the ‘place’ for softball players. They didn’t have that before.” BHS softball head coach Roy Klein said referring to the newly constructed softball field.

   With costs being approximately $350,000, the new softball complex has impressed many people. Though there have been a few complaints about the delayed completion date and the size of the new facility, Klein believes that as “they’re seeing the structure more nearly completed, they realize it really looks sharp, enormous, and overall impressive,” he said.
    The field was built to address a perception that BHS female athletes did not have comparable facilities to male athletes, which would have been a violation of federal guidelines. Superintendent Kevin Dyes said, “Girls athletics was not given as much attention as guys. The softball field was in potential violation of the Title IX rule”, which states “Girls and guys must be treated equally.”

    The players also like the new changes. Sophomore Amber Neal said, “I like how not only the new field brought us confidence, but it also brought together our team with the new locker room.”

     Though practice times have been cut short and game locations were moved, the team and coaches are excited about the upcoming final completion date, expected about May 1.  The team has been playing games at the site as construction continues. 

    “The main advantage I see is that it has brought a toughness and a ‘no excuses’ mentality to our players. We’ve persevered through it,” Klein said. 

      Tonight the team will face Fredericksburg at 7PM on the new field with the district championship on the line.  “We’re 8-0 and Fredericksburg is 7-1,” Klein said. “If we win tonight, we clinch first place and a first round bye.”