BVA board discusses day games at DiVirgilio

By CHRISTINE HAINES

chaines@yourmvi.com

Belle Vernon Area School Board members Monday said they wanted to dispel rumors in the community regarding home baseball games.

School Director Dan Kovatch said six of the nine home games will be played under the lights at the DiVirgilio Sports Complex. Current plans call for the first three home games scheduled for March and early April to be played at 4:30 p.m. instead of a 7 p.m. start in order to take advantage of warmer daylight temperatures.

“It’s due to the possibility temperatures would be under 50 degrees, the industry standard for aluminum bats,” Kovatch said.

Kovatch said the decision was made after discussions between the baseball coach and the athletic director.

“That’s the kind of professional standards we like to have with our coaches collaborating with the athletic director,” said board President Dan Engstrom.

School director Joe Grata asked whether the baseball team had all the equipment it needs for preseason conditioning at Marion Elementary School. Kovatch said the former Rostraver Middle School is being used for weight training, but the rubberized gym floor at Marion Elementary is more suitable for activities in which the hard ball would impact the gym floor.

“We are having issues with pitching and batting needs,” Kovatch said.

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