If Elton Goodwin Field proves unfit for South Kitsap's home slate during the remainder of the regular season, Kirk said the school has secured the South Kitsap Eastern Little League Field as a backup. "The drainage system on the baseball field is old and does not do its job," Kirk said. It's what happens to the water once it hits the ground. It's not necessarily rain that's the problem. South Kitsap High School athletic director Kelly Kirk said there's a reason Elton Goodwin Field has been mostly unplayable in recent seasons. "It's the most stressful outfield I think I've played on." "Not fun," said senior left fielder Nate Wotzka. It's the same problem in the outfield, which features random soft spots and ruts. "I've never played on a field that's worse," senior shortstop Torre DiGiovanni said.ĭiGiovanni said for every 10 grounders hit in his direction during batting practice and drills, three or four will take a bad hop. South Kitsap's players, who at times practice on the school's turf football field or in the gymnasium, say it's obvious Elton Goodwin Field is past its expiration date. From old, uneven dirt on the infield and to muddy patches on the outfield, the complaints are wide-ranging. "There is only so much you can do with something like this," said Logue, whose team is set to play nine of its final 10 regular-season games at home. Relatively mild weather in March allowed the Wolves to use the field for training, but players and coaches spent upwards of 40 minutes each practice taking care of the grounds. After practice, Logue continued raking, spending a total of eight "miserable" hours in maintenance-mode before heading home at 6 p.m.ĭespite the work, Logue knows that any substantial amount of rain will make Elton Goodwin Field unplayable for days at a time. Since winning the Class 4A state title in 2015, South Kitsap has played home games only four times and practiced on the field sparingly. With a morning practice scheduled, Logue showed up to the field near sunrise and began raking the dirt infield. The wound could be considered self-inflicted after Logue waged war on Elton Goodwin Field on March 24, a Saturday that was no off-day for South Kitsap's head coach. Marcus Logue held up his right hand, revealing the red remnant of a nasty, quarter-sized blister. "We're ready to go." Weathering the storm "We'll play anywhere, any weather," senior catcher Alex Garcia said. The Wolves have learned that playing meaningful baseball each spring means being prepared to hit the highway. It's The Wolves' first scheduled home game of the year they deliberately back-loaded their schedule with home games in hopes of catching a dry late spring. It's unknown if the field will be playable on Monday, when South Kitsap is scheduled to host a game against Graham-Kapowsin. That's the only game that's been played there since a new scoreboard was installed at the field.
South Kitsap has played 28 consecutive road games since its last game at Goodwin Field, a loss to Timberline in May 2016. The contest at Olympia is the 49th road game in the past 50 games for South Kitsap, a team whose home venue - a soggy, worn-out Elton Goodwin Field - has remained unsuitable for practices and games for most of the past four years.
0 kommentar(er)
