The name says it all: the Lady Bruin Softball Field.
For years, the Bartlesville High School softball program utilized the Blazer Complex to play its games and conduct its practices. And while coaches and players were happy to be able to put the multi-field complex to use, it was never a place the Lady Bruins could truly call their own. It belonged to the Blazer softball program.
With construction moving steadily along, the Lady Bruins will soon have their own softball facility. Located between the Bartlesville Mid-High School and Hoover Elementary School campuses – just off of Baylor Dr . – the Lady Bruin Softball Field is a product of the $29.95 million school bond issue which passed in May of 2007. Plans call for it to open in time for the 2008 fall season. The Lady Bruins' first regular-season home game is slated for Aug. 12 against Stillwater.
“It will be a good place for the girls to practice and play,” says Tom Wheeler, the Bartlesville High School athletic director. “With the care we're going to put into it, it will be a very nice place.”
Much of the progress that has been made on the facility can be easily viewed. The concession area – a two-story structure which will include a press area as well as restrooms – is almost completely framed. The basic structure of the two dugout areas are in place as is the outfield wall and the rest of the fence which outlines the field. Lights were put up earlier this spring.
“The rain has set us back a little bit,” says Dr. Richard Rosenberger, the Bartlesville Public School District's executive director of human resources who has helped to oversee the project. “But I think we'll see quite a bit of our concrete work finished soon.”
Once work on the Lady Bruin Softball Field is completed, it will feature plenty of amenities. Batting tunnels and pitching areas will be on hand to help players hone their games. Bleachers will be found down both baselines, allowing for a total seating capacity of approximately 300. A storage tunnel will be readily utilized and fresh turf will soon be put in.
Ample parking is available in the Mid-High lot, which will be just a few feet from the main entrance of the complex.
“The team will utilize the girls' locker room in the Mid-High School ,” notes Wheeler.
Once the Lady Bruin Softball Field opens, it will mark the latest in a long line of recent athletic facility improvements within the BPSD. New practice fields for football, baseball, softball and soccer began springing up on the BHS campus in 2002. Like the practice fields, the BHS Fieldhouse, which debuted in December of 2006, was a product of the $30.5 million school bond issue which passed in 2001. A 2,200-seat arena, the BHS Fieldhouse is specially tailored for basketball and volleyball play.
New artificial turf will soon be installed at Custer Stadium. The turf – made possible by a $650,000 donation from the Bartlesville-based Lyon Foundation – is Sportex Momentum 41. Due to be installed this summer, it will be soft and lush like grass, but promises to hold up well under regular use while requiring very little maintenance work. The Chuck Doornbos Track at Custer Stadium was renovated in 2004.
“We're trying to provide our kids with the best facilities possible,” says Wheeler. “The construction of the new Lady Bruin Softball Field is part of an ongoing movement.”
Steady progress continues on the new Lady Bruin Softball Field, which is going up between the Bartlesville Mid-High School and Hoover Elementary School campuses. The field is expected to be ready in time for the Bartlesville High School Lady Bruins' 2008 varsity softball fall season.