This month’s senior softball games are moving to the Arnold R. Burton Complex in Salem.
The four games, which will feature 2020 high school graduates who lost out on their senior softball season because of the coronavirus pandemic, are still set for July 20-21.
The original wish was to use the softball field at Lord Botetourt High School. But 48 players signed up, so the Botetourt County recreation and facilities department decided the high school would not work for social distancing reasons.
“Once they figured out what our numbers were looking like, they just felt like Lord Botetourt wasn’t going to be an adequate facility for the social distancing … since it’s just the one field,” said William Byrd assistant coach Kassie Brammer, who is one of the organizers of the event.
Botetourt County recreation and facilities director Jim Farmer suggested the organizers look elsewhere in the area.
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“I’m looking at L.B. thinking, ‘Oh my gosh, it’s kind of tight there with fencing and parking,’ ” Farmer said. “Being able to do the social distancing thing wasn’t going to be conducive.
“Before it even got to the county approval process, they came back to us and said, ‘Looks like we’re going to have four teams.’ … I could just see that wasn’t going to be the ideal place to have it. … Not a lot of space to spread out.”
The games will be held at two of the three softball fields at the Burton Complex.
The facility is in Salem, but it is actually run by the Roanoke County parks, recreation and tourism department.
“With the way that the complex is set up, people will be able to bring their chairs and spread out along the first- and third-base lines and will be able to go into the outfield behind the fence to be able to watch,” Roanoke County parks, recreation and tourism director Doug Blount said. “We’ll have portable scoreboards up so folks can follow the game from wherever they’re sitting.
“We’re just glad to be able to help out and provide a venue so that these girls can have a proper sendoff for their softball season.”
There will still be two games each night. The players will be divided among four teams.
But instead of having a 6 p.m. doubleheader each night, the two games each night will now be played simultaneously to take advantage of the Burton Complex’s multiple fields. The games will be played at 7 p.m. each night.
Seniors not only lost out on their final high school season but also on their senior day ceremony. So players and their parents will take part in a pregame ceremony on the field on July 20.
With the doubleheader plan scrapped, there will now be a single pregame ceremony on July 20 featuring all 48 players. The ceremony will begin at 5:45 p.m. and will be held at just one of the Burton Complex fields.
“When we give the girls the roses, the person giving them will be in a mask and gloves,” Brammer said. “When we have them lined up for the ceremony, they’ll be 6 feet apart. The photographer will maintain 6 feet when they take the pictures.”
Players from 22 high schools have registered for the games.
Among the players who have signed up are Virginia signees Abby Weaver (Cave Spring) and Madison Harris (Brookville); James Madison signee Meredith Wells (Lord Botetourt); Lynchburg recruit Lexi Powell (William Byrd); Christopher Newport recruit Katie Currin (Blacksburg); and Radford recruit Kyndall Stanley (Christiansburg).
A dozen high school coaches will help steer the teams, including William Byrd’s Greg Barton, Cave Spring’s Nick Sharp, Blackburg’s Marty McMahon and Franklin County’s Bryan Forbes.