Message from Belmont Youth Softball

Dear Town Meeting Members,

We write today as the administrators of Belmont Youth Softball (BYS) to express support for maintaining the Concord Ave softball diamond, a vital component of the BYS program, as you consider the future of the fields west of Harris. Understanding that not all members are familiar with BYS, we would like to provide some information about the program overall and as it relates to field space considerations currently being reviewed by Town Meeting.

BYS provides an opportunity for girls from grades K-8 to learn the sport of softball while obtaining the benefits of youth sports – team play, camaraderie, and sportsmanship, all while building confidence and self-esteem. As BYS is not a leveled program (divisions are organized by age group) and does not make “cuts”, all interested players are welcome to participate. This approach and the dedication of countless volunteer coaches over the years has fostered continued growth of the program to where we are today – a program that welcomes over 140 girls across 10 travel teams plus an instructional division for our youngest players.

Belmont Youth Softball is a member of the CityTown League (CTL), comprised of 12 neighboring communities. During our spring season, Belmont hosts a total of 58 home games, plus additional playoff games, select team games, a league tournament and BYS skills event.  Home games are balanced 50% with away games against CTL opponents. Currently we make full use of field access at Chenery (2 diamonds) along with the JV diamond at Concord Ave and the BHS diamond at Clay Pit when not in use by the high school.

With our volume of home games, plus the inherent variability of weather and related rescheduling needs, practice time is at a premium. It was especially difficult when the Concord Ave field was unavailable to BYS given Grove St. renovations – our teams were lucky to have just one practice per week, typically with two or three teams having to practice together. While we made the best of the situation to build BYS spirit across teams, it absolutely hampered quality instruction and progress based on individual team needs.

In addition to providing youth softball opportunities, BYS plays an important role in providing a player pipeline to BHS. The varsity team has become increasingly competitive in recent years, returning to state tournament play last year under the dedicated direction of its new coach, Joe Tuzzolo. BHS is developing players who are committing to colleges to play softball (Colby, Union, and Williams). The current JV team includes 16 players, a significant roster reflecting player interest. Availability of field space for both JV and Varsity is critical to the future of those programs as one feeds into the other, and continuity matters.

As plans for the fields west of Harris are considered, we believe that any reduction in field space for softball will be very detrimental to the continued growth and success of this town sport for our girls, from kindergarten through high school.  We support collaborative discussion about the future use of that space and are happy to be part of creative brainstorming to potentially address multiple needs, but at this time respectfully urge you to keep the field needs of softball a priority in your discussions.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,

Christine Makarewicz  & Kathy Marcos

Belmont Youth Softball