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On
December 6, 2012, the dirt was turned for the construction of Lady
Wave Stadium. Now, with 11 days
remaining until opening day, the
completion of Lady Wave Stadium is close. Weather permitting the
inaugural
game at the new complex will happen between the Wave and
Huber Heights Wayne starting at 11 a.m., March 30.
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Lady Wave
Stadium nearing completion
Opening day in 11
days
By George Starks
GREENVILLE - It was just a little over 90 days ago, December 6, 2012
that a new era in Greenville sports started to unfold.
The ground was broken and the construction of Lady Wave Stadium
(Championship Field) was underway.
The new complex is nearing completion and on March 30, the Wave will
hook up with Wayne for the inaugural game at the new complex.
“This is exciting,” said Greenville coach Jerrod Newland. “It’s
awesome. It has exceeded my expectations. It’s going to be a great
showcase for Lady Wave softball. It looks better than anything I could
have imagined. It’s really come together and the green and black really
stands out. This goes above and beyond anything I could have dreamed
of. Never in my wildest dreams! This has state of the art everything.
It’s pretty crazy. This will be one of the top four or five high school
stadiums in the state.”
Newland reflected over the past three months.
“If you look back to the 6th of December and the crazy weather we’ve
had, just over 90 days ago and to think in such a short period of time,
it’s nearly completed, it’s just unbelievable,” quipped Newland. “This
is what happens when a group of people come together with one dream.
That dream was to build Lady Wave Softball Stadium. The great thing is
this complex will be here long past any of us. A lot of games will be
played here long after we’re gone.”
While Newland is happy with the results, there are others who are
involved as well.
“The kids are overwhelmed,” said Newland. “We’ve not had the chance to
go out there a lot but the few times we were able to get out there,
they were just amazed with it. It’s going to be great for the young
kids of Greenville who have dreamed of playing here. This is something
the kids can be proud of.”
In his ten-year tenure as the boss of the Wave softball program,
Newland has numerous sectional and district titles with three regional
championships. Included in that is a state championship (2007), a state
runner-up (2012) and a final four appearance.
“The first 10 years have been great,” admitted Newland. “I’m excited
about the next 10 years.”
With 27 games on the 2013 Wave schedule, 17 of those games are
scheduled to be played at Lady Wave Stadium.
“With 17 home games this year, it will give people a chance to come out
and enjoy the new stadium,” said Newland. “It will hold 333 people, so
there’s plenty of room for everyone. Greenville softball isn’t a minor
thing anymore. It’s not only a big deal for Greenville but for Darke
County.”
In addition to the kids, the administrators of GHS have weighed in with
the coach.
“They think it’s great and are very pleased with it,” said Newland.
“They are happy with the fact that we grabbed this thing and ran with
it.
On opening day, Newland said not only will the varsity be playing that
day but the junior varsity and the junior high will be in action as
well.
Newland concluded by saying that a proposal is being put together for
the OHSAA in an attempt to land not only sectional games but district
and possibly regional games as well.
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