Many have offered to help restore diamond

The Intelligencer/Wheeing News-Register

By RICK THORP

GLEN DALE - Sean Edge paid a visit to Monarch Field on Friday afternoon.

But it wasn't exactly the way he remembered it.

The current Wheeling Jesuit University baseball player and former John Marshall High School standout stopped by to see if he could help clean up the pristine diamond, which was ravaged by flood waters Wednesday night.

Edge hasn't been alone. Many folks from Marshall County have visited to offer their services; something that's much appreciated by Sabrina Montgomery, wife of Monarchs coach Bob Montgomery and the person in charge of keeping field in tip-top shape.

''We've had current players and former players, along with some friends and family, come down to offer assistance any way they can,'' she said Friday afternoon during a break in working on the field.

''A lot are speechless (when they see the field) and aren't really sure what to say or what to offer.

''We've been pleased with all the offers.''

The Montgomerys have also received plenty of phone calls. But most of them went answered as the couple has spent most of their waking hours the last two days at the field trying to devise a plan of attack for what Wednesday's severe thunderstorm left behind. Namely the mud and debris that washed in after a creek that runs behind the field went over its banks.

The muck reached all the way to the dugouts. Sabrina Montgomery said water was up about three cement blocks high, which was enough to make a huge mess.

On its way there, the weight of the water and mud virtually destroyed the outfield fence.

''It also got into our shed and got into our machines, so we had to get those serviced,'' Sabrina Montgomery said.

The past few days haven't exactly been easy for Sabrina Montgomery. It's tough to see something that you've worked hours to maintain damaged in such a short period by an uncontrollable force.

But she's seen it before.

When the remnants of Hurricane Ivan blew through the Ohio Valley in September 2004, the field received its worse beating in quite sometime.

This time, it wasn't as bad. But it wasn't good, either.

''As I was approaching the field for the first time (Thursday morning) I was hoping it wasn't as bad as last time,'' Sabrina Montgomery said. ''I didn't see as much (mud). Still, the damage was significant.

''The amount of mud you can on the field this time is comparable to the amount of grass you could see (in 2004).''

Sabrina Montgomery and her dedicated crew have made quite a bit of progress in a short time in their efforts to restore the field to its former self.

Banners that hung on the outfield fence have been recovered, most of the water and mud has been removed from the dugouts and most of the surface mud that remained on the infield has been washed away.

''We have made progress in the field, behind the plate, and have removed most of the mud off the warning track,'' Sabrina Montgomery said.

''If nothing else, we can see the diamond ... and that's hope.''

The worst part of the damage now is near the fence area. A large swath of mud remains in deep left field and beyond the fence.

''They worked very hard Thursday in scraping the mud off the fence that had fallen and we had two other guys pulling the banners off,'' Sabrina Montgomery said. ''We'll get them washed off and back up when the fence is ready.''

The field's new concession stand also took a hit.

''We had to remove a lot of paper products and other items that had been stored there in preparation for the Beast of the East,'' Sabrina Montgomery said.

The youth baseball tournament is slated for July 2-5 and Monarch Field is one of its top locations. B.A. Crawford, co-director of the Beast with Bo McConnaughy, said Friday he's confident the field will be playable in two weeks.

''We'll play,'' he stated, adding he had been in contact with Bob Montgomery about the situation and viewed the damage first hand.

Crawford said if the field isn't ready, there are alternate sites available such as Shadyside, Bridgeport and Tyler Consolidated.

But he's sure things in Glen Dale will be ready.

As for Sabrina Montgomery, she's confident, too.

''In 2004, people said there's no way you'll play in the spring of 2005,'' she remembered. ''We're pretty determined and when we think we can do something if we just plug away until we get there.

''We'll see what happens. We need good weather and some things to go our way with some materials, but we're optimistic, and that's the only way to be.''