Alumni Field at Kutcher Foundation Stadium breaks ground to begin construction

Alumni+Field+at+Kutcher+Foundation+Stadium+breaks+ground+to+begin+construction

Sydney Miller, Sports Editor

The baseball program at JC is getting a very big upgrade. Their new facility has been in the planning stages since last spring, and construction began in early November. The John Carroll community celebrated as ground was broken.

This new field was expedited in the design project, and the playing surface will be finished this spring so that teams will be ready to play on it.
This new facility will be utilized by both the baseball and softball programs.
Head Baseball Coach and JC Class of 2001 Alumnus Darrion Siler said, “The groundbreaking happened in November, where some of the team got together to celebrate the new state-of-the art baseball facility.”
He said that the field is “coming together swiftly” in a relatively short span of time, and in regard to its planning, “[it] picked up speed in spring and summer [and] gained momentum.”
The new baseball facility will be known as Alumni Field at Kutcher Foundation Stadium.
Coach Siler said that the on-going project is to be done in phases, adding that the playing surface that is used by the players during the game will be finished in time for the spring baseball season.
Coach Siler said, “We love all of our alumni,” and a network of baseball alumni made this project successful. “[The] number one donor to the program is the Kutcher Foundation…in order to help our young folks get opportunities.”
Both the baseball and softball teams can use this field is from a new addition to the facility, a removable mound which will be suitable to be changed from a baseball to a softball pitching mound.
The new field affects the entire school as a whole. With the new addition to the facility, Coach Siler commented that it will be “a wonderful greeting, entering campus and seeing a beautiful baseball field.” The field itself will be able to be seen from a large part of campus.
He said this field specifically will help the baseball program with “recruiting and inviting young players who are interested in joining a premier baseball program.”
For current and incoming players, the field will provide “opportunities for our players to be on a college-level elite field and stadium,” Coach Siler commented.
The field being more advanced than before will give the players who want to continue their careers in baseball a taste of what the next level of competition would be like.
In anticipation of the new facility, Coach Siler said, “I think there is a buzz going around of excitement. To be able to play on something like this is a big deal for a lot of guys. I am excited for them.”
Senior and Baseball Player Kyle Ball said, “The new field brings feelings of anticipation as well as exhilaration. I feel very appreciative toward the people who made this happen.”
The new field means a lot to him, and through the baseball program at JC, he has “developed in the field, in the classroom, and in [the] community,” Kyle said.
He added, “I want to thank all the people who have made this possible—especially the Kutcher family who is the driving force behind all these great things.”