Part of Belpre Football Club’s facilities was filmed underwater on Thursday. The league’s opening day, originally scheduled for Saturday, was postponed due to the flooding. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
As the Mid-Ohio Valley takes on water, local sports leagues and facilities are doing what they can to save the spring season.
Areas near the Ohio and Muskingum rivers were severely affected by flooding and several fields were completely underwater Friday afternoon.
Marietta has been hit as hard as anywhere. MHS athletic director Cody Wenderlik said the high school baseball and softball fields, the track at Don Drum Stadium, the tennis courts and the crew boathouse were affected by the flooding.
“Our rowing program had to move everything from the boathouse,” he said. “We were rushing to clear everything as the water on the floor was coming. The rowing team have a great support system at Harmar Rowing Club, plus the community members and volunteers are also a huge help.”
Wenderlich hoped Tiger Navy would be able to host its annual Lindamood Cup regatta Saturday.
For baseball and softball, it’s a matter of waiting for the flood to recede, assessing the damage and getting to work cleaning it up.
“We still can’t drive to the ballpark because the roads leading there are covered,” Wenderlich said. “The last time I looked, the junior high softball field was completely under water. The high school field came back, but there was still a lot of water in left and right field.
“Once the flood recedes, it will take a lot of work to get it up and running.” We’re trying to hold on until we get back on the pitch.”
Marietta had to cancel its Bob Annasenz Invitational meet scheduled for Friday.
“We had to fully load the entire Don Drumm and get everything out of the tunnel,” Wenderlich said. “This is the first track in five years that I’ve had to cancel. Hopefully we can get back there next week. The track will need to be disinfected. Who knows what germs and fungi we will have to protect our players from.”
As for tennis, Marietta College athletic director Larry Heather said the courts will need power washing after the flood recedes.
MC’s softball field is completely underwater and the softball and baseball teams had to postpone their weekend games. However, Hisser said, the baseball facility is in great shape, but the roads leading to it are not.
“Access is limited because the roads are flooded,” Heather said. “We made a few changes, turning home games into away games. We got great cooperation from other athletic directors and coaches.”
One school that sees the flooding trend in a positive light is Fort Frye. After their baseball and softball fields were completely under water until the middle of last week, the cadets got to work Thursday after the flood receded.
“It’s all backwards,” Fort Frye athletic director Matt Tullius said. “We actually had a high school track meet (Friday) and the softball and baseball teams practiced again. We rock and roll, thankfully. We didn’t really suffer much damage.”
Post-flood cleanup includes clearing debris from fences, pressure washing surfaces, and hosing down dugouts.
“Our custodial staff did a great job,” Tullius said.
It’s not just high school and college sports that are affected. Youth football clubs across the area are feeling the impact.
Belpre Football Club’s facilities were completely flooded, halting the start of the 2024 youth spring season.
“Opening Day was supposed to be (Saturday)” said Rick Seabow, the club’s vice president. “We had to postpone this, but we will be able to save the season. We won’t know the extent of the damage until the water recedes. Our paint shed probably has three and a half feet of water in it, so we’ll lose some stuff in there, but nothing that will put a damper on the season.
Belpre Soccer Club has more than 600 children enrolled, from U4 to U20. They use 14 fields for games and training.
“People on our board take this seriously,” Seebo said. “We want to make sure the kids have a great experience. We’ll do what we have to. We did a Facebook post in our group and many people offered to step up and clean up. It’s just a matter of when we can get in there to make the difference.”
The league usually plays its matches on Saturdays. Depending on how long the season is delayed, they will decide whether or not to extend the season to make up the games. Seebaugh also said playing some games on weeknights could be an option.
Contact Jordan Holland at [email protected].
