Fields of dreams
Capital sports venues nearly finished
Coach Dennis Hernandez can already envision the first day he and the Capital Lady Jaguars get to use the brand-new softball field, which is next to the baseball field.
It will be a sleepover in which the Lady Jaguars have a scrimmage, then camp out on the field, but with one caveat.
“No fire on the turf,” said Hernandez, the first-year head softball coach. “Nothing but lanterns, but once the girls get out on the field, it will be hard to take it away. It’ll be hard to take them off of it.”
Unfortunately, the impact of COVID-19 will keep the softball team, as well as all spring teams, off high school fields for the foreseeable future. When prep teams can resume a normal schedule, Capital’s softball and baseball teams will get to finally enjoy their fields’ improvements. The biggest change will be the softball field moving from near Jaguar Field to next to the baseball field. Both teams will play on artificial turf instead of grass next season.
Workers are nearing completion of the fields, and they should be done Tuesday, said Larry Chavez, Santa Fe Public Schools assistant superintendent of athletics/activities and school support. Chavez said the project cost about $2.8 million. The fields were supposed to be done by March 10 for both teams’ home openers, but work was delayed after a suspected arson fire on Feb. 3 burned 18 rolls of turf and 10 bags of base course.
The teams turned March 10 home games against Española Valley (baseball) and Los Alamos (a softball doubleheader) into road games, as well all subsequent home games until the fields were finished.
Capital athletic director Charles Bernert said the schedule changes affected the baseball team more than the softball team. The boys played about 10 home games before the season was canceled last week by the New Mexico Activities Association over the coronavirus pandemic.
Bernet said turfing the field was necessary because of persistent prairie dogs. Playing games on the old grass surface was dangerous because holes the animals dug could lead to serious injuries.
“Every day you could walk out there and find new holes that the gophers had dug in there,” Bernert said. “That made the outfield like you were walking in a sand pit, not knowing what hole you were going to hit. The last two years, we’ve been praying no one gets hurt.”
Also challenging was accommodating spring teams while the winter teams were still playing in February and early March. The baseball and softball teams each took half of the football field, with runners from the track and field team circling the field — when weather permitted. Other times, the rest of the school became a practice spot.
“Everyone was fighting for space, whether it was in the gym or on the football field,” Bernert said. “But it all worked out.”
Hernandez said there were times the Lady Jaguars practiced in the cafeteria or empty hallways.
“We’re no strangers to putting in work in some tight spots,” Hernandez said.
Still, the disappointment over the season’s premature end, especially with the fields nearing completion, had a profound effect on the seniors. Fernandez said many of his seniors cried when they learned the season was halted. Even more frustrating for the softball team was that it did something unprecedented in its only game of the season.
The Lady Jaguars swept Los Alamos for the first time in at least two decades, lending credence to the idea that Capital was on the verge of a special season.
“This year was going to be different,” Hernandez said. “I had three pitchers, and we usually don’t have that here. The stoppage, it was totally heartbreaking. The seniors who are never going to play again here for the school had an opportunity to do something special.”
As for the baseball program, it was off to a rocky start with a 1-4 record, but it had enough players to field varsity and junior varsity teams.
Capital also lost the chance to do something special this year, as far as a grand-opening ceremony. Bernert said it is likely the school will conduct one to start next season.
Meanwhile, both teams will have to make do with creating their own moments to remember — by the light of a lantern, if need be.