Softball field returns to Samo

A softball field will finally be back at Samo, even if it means that the team has to share it.Last spring, SMMUSD officials came up with a plan to bring back a softball field at Samo. It was decided that the softball field will be added to Sealy Field, the Samo baseball field, which has brought conflict to the softball team and the baseball team over division of playing space. The construction will begin mid-November and the new field will hopefully be ready for the teams to practice in January. According to Carey Upton, acting Director of Facility Improvement Projects of SMMUSD, the project is not an ideal fix for either softball or baseball.“Practices will be difficult. Only one sport’s game can be played at a time,” Upton said. “This will mean both baseball and softball teams will have to travel to Memorial Park to practice and play games.”Back in 2010, SMMUSD officials made the decision to move forward with the Innovation Building, a $55 million project that would force the softball field to be destroyed. This project included the addition of a new $4 million softball field. But when the SMMUSD officials decided that this would be an inefficient use of tax money, the softball field plans were halted.For the past five to six years, the Samo softball team has been scrambling to find venues to play at, making it difficult to carry an audience to watch them. They played most of their home games at Memorial Park on Olympic Blvd. Former Samo softball coach Debbie Skaggs has faced abysmally low turnout at games, even through several incredibly successful years for the varsity team.“Just getting the transportation and getting the kids over there could be a dilemma if you didn’t have a lot of parents who could pick kids up.” Skaggs said. “We were in the CIF championship game back to back years and we barely had people at our game.”With this addition of a softball field also comes some controversy from the Samo baseball program. The softball field will be placed in baseball’s centerfield, meaning the two programs will have to share field space for the first time in Samo history. A temporary fence will be put along baseball’s first base, third base, and pitcher’s mound. This will shorten baseball’s centerfield by a little, while still meeting CIF standards. The adding of a softball field will not only shorten the baseball field, but also change the layout of the outdoor basketball courts. The courts will be changed from three small courts, to two full sized courts and one half court.Many of Samo’s baseball players are frustrated by this new tighter layout. According to Samo baseballplayer Michael Finkelstein (’18), it is unnecessary for the space to be taken from baseball territory.“I don’t really like how we have to share the field with softball because there is so much unused room at Samo,” Finkelstein said.Despite the delays and the prospect of sharing a space with the baseball program, the softball players are eager to get a field back. Samo varsity softball player Jasmine Gomez (’17) sums up what seems to be the overall consensus on the project.“I’m excited that we’re finally getting [a field] but it’s kind of a bummer that we’ll have to share one when we’ve waited years for our own.”