Thanks to the Press for the excellent coverage of the Harvard softball program’s rebuilding process and the efforts to meet the players’ urgent need for a field for next spring.
Our female athletes are inspired and (cautiously) optimistic by the new field discussions. A high school game field can fit at Hildreth Elementary School, paid for with existing project funds, built by the spring, and would augment school facilities without affecting the playgrounds at HES … plus, there’s no alternative option.
The two school softball teams already have full rosters for next spring, despite losing 80% of our players in the Ayer Shirley co-op. That co-op has expired, and we don’t need to send our players to another district next spring. Immaculate Heart of Mary School [in Still River] sends us players for baseball, and they will send girls too, given the opportunity by the Harvard Public Schools athletic director.
Harvard’s only softball game field, on Ann Lees Road, will be fully occupied by these two school teams. This spring, it was 111% booked with one school team and four town teams. Parks and Rec cannot host six teams on one field next year, and no game fields are available to rent. Our town teams will lose our league enrollment without a game field, which will end our town softball program. As mentioned by Superintendent Linda Dwight at a recent meeting of the Softball Field Review Subcommittee, the Harvard Youth Baseball & Softball Association’s town softball league is vitally important to the success of these school teams—we appreciate her larger vision and urgent engagement.
We can celebrate having a Harvard high school softball team again, and a healthy pipeline of under-8 to under-12 players. We welcome new players at all levels. Reach out, and look for the “Softball Rocks!” float celebrating at the Independence Day parade!
Toby Bazarnick, softball dad, coach, and HYBSA treasurer
Houghton Lane
