Q1) We all know that you guys have been playing games off campus the past couple of years, but sometimes it is overlooked that it also means that daily practices have been taking place in distant places as well. What challenges has that presented that people might not know about?
“It means that we’re out searching to find a place to practice every day. The weather often dictates if we can go to someone else’s place or if we stay here at Concordia. We also have to rely upon other team’s schedules as their games dictate whether we can practice at their facility or not. Not only does this place stress on our players but obviously our assistant coaches who are coming from other jobs and sometimes have to adjust where they are going on the fly.”
Q2) The team has had to postpone or cancel more than a dozen games due to the wet spring we are having in the Pacific Northwest. How will the new complex alter how you manage the schedule in terms of competition and practice?
“You know, the coaches and I have talked about all the things that we’ll be able to do. The games, obviously, are going to be a huge bonus, because we know we can wait for a storm to pass and we won’t have to worry about the field being unplayable. We will have the mound taken care of and will be able to get right back out there and play. But I think what is going to be even more valuable is the practice time. What we have had to stretch to three, three-and-a-half hours because of being limited by space we will now be able to get by with a two, two-and-a-half hours of practice. We are going to be able to get so much more accomplished in a shorter period of time and that’s going to really benefit the student-athletes.”
Q3) There has been a lot of movement on the site the past couple of weeks. The houses are cleared and the bases for the team rooms are starting to show. What has that been like to drive down 27th and see the changes?
“ It’s just so exciting when you start seeing concrete poured and you start to see footings of buildings go up and you visualize a little bit what it’s going to be like. We walked out today and looked at the turf samples – it’s been a long road, but finally you can see some light at the end of the tunnel. I have to temper the excitement a little bit, because we are in the middle of our season right now and we have seniors that won’t have a chance to play on the new field. I have a feeling we will have a record turnout for our annual alumni game.”
Q4) Talk about the sacrifices the upperclassmen have made for the long-term success of the baseball program.“The end of the year is always difficult as you realize you will soon be saying goodbye to your seniors, but this year will be particularly difficult. I have kids who have been here four years and were freshmen when we last played on campus and they have stayed positive during the whole process. I’m going to thank each and every one of them for getting us through it. As I always tell them, I hope they come back and just celebrate with the rest of us because they’ve really sacrificed a lot to get to this point. Down the road, I think it’s going to be a point of pride for them that they were part of the team that got us through this transition.”
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