ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Only the field was artificial.
The smiles were genuine.
Cedar Crest College had a symbolic groundbreaking ceremony to kick off its $2.5 million stadium project at Cynthia L. Blaschak Softball Field.
Four months from now, the grass and dirt field will have been transformed into an all-weather, artificial turf field with improved drainage and stadium lighting.
"This is going to be amazing!"Alexis Kline, junior shortstop, Cedar Crest College softball
Groundbreaking begins Monday.
Four months later, it’ll be time to holler, Play Ball!
“This is going to be amazing!” said junior shortstop Alexis Kline, an Allen High School graduate, whose smile stretched from foul pole to foul pole.
“What a great opportunity this will be to have a field where we won’t be limited by the weather. And we’ll be able to play at night. This is great.”
The ceremony included remarks from Elizabeth Meade, president of Cedar Crest College; John Zembron, vice chair of the College's Board of Trustees; State Rep. Mike Schlossberg, D-132nd; and Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk.
“My first year here, in 2017, I saw how the installation of a turf soccer field elevated our team there,” Meade said. “And we saw how well our softball team had been doing in 2019, winning its first conference championship on the old field.
“So we started a capital campaign for this project. This will further amplify the team’s already strong level of play.”
Falcons softball coach Kim Begley said a turf field and lights will give the team an opportunity to be their best.
“Regardless of the weather here in the Northeast, we’ll be able to practice on it whenever we want to,” she said. “We are super excited about this.”
Cedar Crest’s award is part of $7.5 million in grant funding secured for Allentown improvement projects by then-State Sen. Pat Browne, R-16th, and Reps. Peter Schweyer, D-134th and Schlossberg.
“Cedar Crest is worth this investment because Cedar Crest is involved with all of us,” Schlossberg said.
“This also speaks to Cedar Crest’s ability to find resources and expand and innovate its campus.”
Skepton Construction, of Pennsburg, will install the turf field.
“The entire field will be stripped down to dirt,” said Roger Perose, Skepton executive vice president. “The design of the field will be moved about 50 feet away from (Hamilton Boulevard, which runs along the first base line.). A stone base will be put down, and the turf will be installed on top of that.”
An underground drainage system will collect water as it seeps through the porous surface and deliver it to a basin beyond the outfield fence, Perose explained.
Kline has just one more softball season to play. She joined several teammates for a photo op, all of them holding garden spades and wearing construction helmets while standing along the left field line.
“We’ve been hearing about this turf field for two years,” she said. “Now it’s almost here. We can’t wait.”
