Say goodbye to the mud bowls, Sidney.
With the near completion of a $7.7 million capital project, Sidney’s athletic complex got a full makeover, including turf fields for outdoor sports. The baseball and softball fields will each have turf infields, and the all-purpose football field will be home to field hockey and soccer as well. That field also features a new video scoreboard.
In the past, rain has turned the fields into mud pits. That’s no longer the case as the state-of-the-art turf fields will make it possible for games to be held when there’s different weather and make it so players and coaches don’t have to worry about sinking or slipping in sloppy mud.
It also means that, come spring, baseball and softball games won’t have to be immediately called when it rains in the mornings because the full infields are turf. Only the outfields will be natural grass.
The main athletic field will get a full workout this Saturday for Homecoming 2014. A full slate of activities is set to begin at 12:45 p.m. when the varsity field hockey team hosts Deposit. The boys varsity soccer team hosts Afton/Harpursville at 2:30 p.m., followed by Sidney’s girls varsity soccer team playing Greene at 4:15.
The day’s final game is Sidney hosting Bainbridge-Guilford in football at 7 p.m.
Sidney field hockey coach Christine Race said her team is excited for their first home game on the turf this weekend.
“The ability to practice and prepare on a field that is level and constant has allowed for greater skill development and the ability to practice at game speed more frequently,” Race said.
The overall capital project isn’t fully complete yet. Lines still need to be painted on the track and the baseball and football fields need completion.
Other parts of the capital project are also nearing a finish. New boilers are in place and a 60-year-old boiler in the middle school was eliminated.
The auditorium also received a major upgrade with new seating, stage rigging, sound system, and is now air conditioned
The lighting in the gym was also upgraded, as well as the floor being refinished.
The project is coming in under budget. It’s anticipated the project will be full completed by the end of October.
“We’re extremely excited about the completion of this project,” Sidney Superintendent Bill Christensen said. “I especially want to thank the community for their overwhelming support of this project.
The facilities will be used many groups, not just those involved with the school. Christensen said the school is already starting to lease space.
All games Saturday are free and open to the public.
Photo caption: Sidney Assistant Superintendent Corey Green, Superintendent Bill Christensen and Athletic Director Chris Haynes stand at the 50-yard-line of Sidney’s new all-turf field.
With the near completion of a $7.7 million capital project, Sidney’s athletic complex got a full makeover, including turf fields for outdoor sports. The baseball and softball fields will each have turf infields, and the all-purpose football field will be home to field hockey and soccer as well. That field also features a new video scoreboard.
In the past, rain has turned the fields into mud pits. That’s no longer the case as the state-of-the-art turf fields will make it possible for games to be held when there’s different weather and make it so players and coaches don’t have to worry about sinking or slipping in sloppy mud.
It also means that, come spring, baseball and softball games won’t have to be immediately called when it rains in the mornings because the full infields are turf. Only the outfields will be natural grass.
The main athletic field will get a full workout this Saturday for Homecoming 2014. A full slate of activities is set to begin at 12:45 p.m. when the varsity field hockey team hosts Deposit. The boys varsity soccer team hosts Afton/Harpursville at 2:30 p.m., followed by Sidney’s girls varsity soccer team playing Greene at 4:15.
The day’s final game is Sidney hosting Bainbridge-Guilford in football at 7 p.m.
Sidney field hockey coach Christine Race said her team is excited for their first home game on the turf this weekend.
“The ability to practice and prepare on a field that is level and constant has allowed for greater skill development and the ability to practice at game speed more frequently,” Race said.
The overall capital project isn’t fully complete yet. Lines still need to be painted on the track and the baseball and football fields need completion.
Other parts of the capital project are also nearing a finish. New boilers are in place and a 60-year-old boiler in the middle school was eliminated.
The auditorium also received a major upgrade with new seating, stage rigging, sound system, and is now air conditioned
The lighting in the gym was also upgraded, as well as the floor being refinished.
The project is coming in under budget. It’s anticipated the project will be full completed by the end of October.
“We’re extremely excited about the completion of this project,” Sidney Superintendent Bill Christensen said. “I especially want to thank the community for their overwhelming support of this project.
The facilities will be used many groups, not just those involved with the school. Christensen said the school is already starting to lease space.
All games Saturday are free and open to the public.
Photo caption: Sidney Assistant Superintendent Corey Green, Superintendent Bill Christensen and Athletic Director Chris Haynes stand at the 50-yard-line of Sidney’s new all-turf field.