Mars Area School District exploring adding middle school baseball team
ADAMS TWP — Some members of Mars Area School District’s athletic department are looking to potentially restructure the district’s baseball program to expand opportunities for middle school students.
Presently, Mars High School has a freshman team students from seventh or eighth grade can try out for, according to Mike Bordt, school board member and the freshman team’s longtime assistant coach.
Bordt said eighth graders who do not make the cut for the freshman team are put on hold for one year before they can play. Most seventh graders, realistically, do not end up making the freshman team.
Parents have approached the athletic department inquiring why Mars does not have a baseball team for middle school students, said Bordt, who spoke at the district’s Aug. 18 meeting in support of adding the team.
“What I would like to see happen is: We keep the ninth grade team and we also get a seventh and eighth grade team,” he said.
Bordt said if the school board considers and approves the changes he would like to see in the future, eighth graders will still be able to try out for the freshman team and students who don’t qualify will play for the middle school team.
Bordt said he is unsure what a timeline for the restructuring would potentially be if approved.
“It just all depends on how quick we can get everything moving,” Bordt said. “I don't see it being this year. There's still a lot of stuff we need to look at in the meantime.”
Field availability, costs, transportation needs and possibly hiring new personnel are some of the factors the district will have to weigh. Additionally, the district will look at how surrounding school districts approach middle school baseball.
“It's a budgetary consideration,” district superintendent Mark Gross said.
Bordt noted neighboring school districts, such as Seneca Valley and Pine-Richland, have middle school teams, and Mars athletic director Zach Matusak is working on gauging the level of interest from parents.
Jennifer DiCuccio, board member, said she’s not opposed to the proposal but expressed “concern” if there would be enough players to field a team. Anthony DePretis, school board treasurer, also voiced support for a future middle school team but said the board must assess the ability to keep a team running long-term before spending resources to start the program.
Bordt said he does not expect opposition to the proposal.
“I would be very shocked if there would be many people against it. It would be getting more kids on the field, and the baseball program is something that's thriving in our area,” Bordt said.
Some board members said newly introduced sport programs are classified as school-recognized, rather than school-sponsored activities. School recognized activities are not monetarily supported by the district.
A two-year tracking window is typically used by the district to study the sport’s staying power, DePretis said. If sufficient interest is shown, the sport can be promoted to a school sponsored activity.
Board member Aaron Rose pointed out since the baseball program is already in place, the two year window does not apply to the change being considered.
The school board approved a name change on Aug. 18 for the freshman team from “junior high baseball” to the “middle school baseball” program.
