[PAmedic]

Bringing this over from the other board- there were once lots of ideas as to how to upgrade our facilities- was wondering how those plans are coming along in light of recent renovations over at Williams, and proposed improvements (incl bleachers) for the soccer field/track.

http://libertysports.proboards29.com/in ... 1111371127

To help clear up some myths

Fact. As was said by another member worthington stadium was rated best stadium by the Sports Turf Managers Association in 1998.

Fact. The fieldhouse was built with money 100% raised by the coaches and team. Not the Athletic Department

Fact. Our infield is was resodded in the summer of 99 and modeled after the infield at Clemson University with grass up the baselines. This was most likely chosen for the fact that the head baseball groundskeeper at the time work previously for several years at Clemson.

Fact: The Fieldhouse contains indoor astoturfed batting cages and pitching mounds, home-visitor-umpire lockerrooms, weightroom, training room, coaches offices, players lounge, home plate club as well as many other amenities.

I'd like to make a correction to say that the LU athletic department did chip in (a mere) $20,000 to a fieldhouse that took about half a million to build.

Also i'll chime in and say that lights are/should be the number one priority for baseball, not new or additional seating. Night games will give everybody a chance to see the baseball at worthington. Lights are also a must for the chance to host NCAA regionals. Abeit seating would have to also have to be upgraded before that and a fence and ticket gate would have to be put up. This in turn would mean that people would have to buy tickets to the games which would mean a pipeline of revenues that at this time is non-existent.

Lights would add a whole new atmoshpere to the game if a thousand people or so could watch rather than a couple hundred which seems to be the average draw.

[bigsmooth]

i would love to see the stands extended in front of the press box and replace the existing press box with something bigger. maybe even a terrace level above the existing seats..then you would have to cut down those pine trees. but really IMHO, extend the seating to in front of the press box, put restrooms in the new press box on the ground level, and install lights, and it would be so much better. if i was an architect, i would submit a drawing, but im not....it is all in the mind.

[Hold My Own]

I couldnt help but to notice, "the Athletic Dept did chip in 20k to a million dollar project".....let's not get into the fine detials of who raised what b/c there were several key members in this project......


Light's....it's always been the win/lose subject.....you win b/c you get lights and now get to have night games, but you lose b/c you now open up your field a lot more to American Legion games and LCA (after the move I wonder what field they will use) not to mention all the other teams that find their way on here....keep in mind we dont have a full time grounds keeper and more games would mean more work.....hopefully we'll get a full time grounds keeper b/c personally I dont think it's fair to have focus on trying to coach the infielders or hitting and also have on your mind that you'll have to sit on the dreaded tractor for 3 hours after practice every other day

[PeterParker]

At some point in the future build a new park in the David's place parking lot, so you'll have a sort of athletic row (williams stadium, mathes track/soccer and baseball stadium) then leave the other field for American legion games, lca, community involvement (provides a good size parking lot for night games and access from the community using the proposed tunnel under the railroad tracks...perhaps a pipe dream idea....but it is an idea (albeit expensive...but perhaps by renting the original field location out, you could raise some money---not being a baseball player, I am not sure how much "rent" old dude leagues generate these days...)

[Hold My Own]

while that's not a bad idea, I dont really like having to charge teams to play there since it will cause some teams to shy away from coming which means less of a chance that a area talent doesnt get to come on LU's campus 1 more time....sponsors is where it's at....there are tons of Lynchburg and National businesses that want to have their logo up there...Lynchburg Hillcats for example looks like the yellow pages but it really does pay the bills, and it's hard to not find a small market minor league team that doesnt do that