No. 2 story of 2019: Diamond teams still dealing with Michael's aftermath

News Herald (Panama City, FL)

Dec. 30--This story was orginally published in the Jan. 11 edition of The News Herald

When Bay High softball coach Thomas Allen evacuated ahead of Hurricane Michael he feared the worst. Now he wishes those fears had matched the reality that awaited him at the softball facility.

"Absolutely worse than I imagined," Allen said. "My heart kind of sunk down into my stomach when I first saw it."

Allen estimates repairs and equipment will easily cost somewhere north of $100,000 with no idea how big the final price tag could get. Replacing equipment for the Bay High baseball team is expected to cost between $30,000 and $50,000, and the team must also repair virtually all structures and the field itself.

Bay High's baseball and softball teams were hardly the only local programs impacted by Hurricane Michael. Rutherford provided no estimate but sustained significant damage and equipment loss.

Bozeman and Arnold coaches got off relatively easy and still expect a final price tag somewhere above $10,000 and $20,000 for each school, respectively. Mosley athletic director Josh Vandergrift estimated the total there could amount to as much as $2 million for baseball and softball alone.

"Literally looking at a steel batting cage twisted around a light pole, it kind of leaves you speechless," Vandergrift said.

The loss of batting cages was the most common hardship facing local teams, but many also reported damage to one or both dugouts. Damage to scoreboards, press boxes, and equipment such as balls and uniforms was also widespread.

For most schools, assessing the damage is a complicated matter. Some things should be covered by insurance, but what exactly gets paid out remains to be seen.

At the very least, the county has promised it can provide coaches with at least one batting cage to those that no longer have any while also guaranteeing all local fields will be ready come the first week of the season.

Still, booster clubs have never been so critical than they are now. Unfortunately, the parents, local businesses, and other community members that often contribute might find themselves facing increased financial burdens of their own in the aftermath of Michael.

"Fundraising could be put on hold around here for two or three years," Bay baseball coach Andrew Starr said.

Starr said he currently expects the program to make 25 percent or less of what it usually does off stadium signage sponsored by businesses this season.

Bozeman softball coach Jared Smith said he expects a transportation crisis will bring the funding issue to a head for some teams.

In other years, he would rely primarily on school buses for the four or five out-of-county road games, but now he and other coaches have reported that they can't gain access to buses for these trips until after 4 p.m., which is the time many junior varsity games would begin.

"Canceling JV games is not an option," Smith said. "That's how you build a program."

Neither Smith nor the other coaches who mentioned this issue had a problem with schools prioritizing getting kids home from classes over road games; there simply aren't enough buses with drivers to go around.

Smith said getting vans from the airport would be his next option, but he's been told there aren't enough of those to accommodate his team. That leaves him with charter buses, which multiple coaches said can cost more than $1,000 per trip.

His program's travel budget is somewhere in the range of $1,500 to $2,000 this year.

"Any good high school coach knows that your program, it starts with your JV team," Vandergrift said.

Despite his strong convictions, Vandergrift, who also serves as the Dolphins' softball coach, said he expects the team will only have enough interest to field a varsity team this year, though he won't know for sure until tryouts at the end of the month.

At least two Mosley softball players have already relocated after losing their houses in October. That kind of attrition has been commonplace for coaches of ongoing winter sports, but of the 12 teams inquired after, only Bay High's baseball team and North Bay Haven baseball coach Bryan Normand confirmed any more storm-related transfers (one each). However, numerous coaches said they wouldn't know for sure until tryouts were held.

"His mom was driving an hour-and-a-half in the morning and afternoon to get him to and from school," Normand said of the Buccaneers' freshman who relocated. "So I knew it was best for them and I harbor no hard feelings. He felt very guilty and had a hard time telling me. I saw him as someone who could compete for a varsity spot if he wanted it bad enough."

Almost every local coach, except those at Bay High who face similar realities, couldn't help but feel lucky to have avoided the complete destruction that visited Mosley's campus that left little besides a dugout, bathrooms, and concession stands behind.

"To me, it's almost like they know what has happened, but they're not going to let it bring down this season," Vandergrift said of his players. "They want to be one of those teams that people remember."

The same might be said of their peers on the baseball team.

Mosley baseball coach Jon Hudson's team lost virtually everything from pitching machines to uniforms, and some of his bleachers were flung 600 yards away into the woods. The program even lost trophies and most of their other mementos commemorating the successes of previous groups.

"This year is going to be a special story," Hudson said. "Our guys believe that. That motivates them. They want to see people come out and take a look. Look at where we're at."

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