It’s official! After 20-plus years at Lehigh County Park just down the road, or more commonly known around Muhlenberg’s campus as “the Creek,” the College’s softball team will practice and play their home games in a new stadium on the north side of campus. The field will be situated between the newly furnished Varsity Field and Scotty Wood Stadium on what used to be a practice field for the soccer teams and many other purposes. Speculation had floated around for several years about the softball team moving locations, but with construction having officially begun and the college posting about their new expansion projects, there is no need for rumors anymore.
Since the team last played on campus in the 1980s, the team has accomplished quite a bit. They have won three Mid-American Conference (MAC) championships before the team competed in the Centennial Conference (CC), and subsequently six CC championships, including most recently in 2022, courtesy of Sara Karmazyn’s ‘22 walk-home run against Swarthmore College. The team has also seen a multitude of all-conference and all-region athletes.
As Buurman said, “The Creek is the type of place that has helped shape Muhlenberg softball into the program that it is today.”
Looking forward, however, the construction of the new softball field along with the investment from the College signifies ‘Berg Athletics’s vision for the future of their programs. “One of the core values of our athletics department is providing student-athletes a positive NCAA DIII experience,” said Lynn Tubman, Muhlenberg’s athletic director. “This project, along with the baseball project at Bicentennial Park, will give our student-athletes quality playing facilities. This is something the athletics department strives for with all our teams and will continue to plan for the future with ongoing improvements to all our facilities.” This ideal future can also be observed through Varsity Field’s new artificial turf surface and Scotty Wood Stadium’s new digital jumbotron.
What makes projects like these most valuable is the impact they can have on any program’s training and performance, but also the connection they can have with the campus community. Having a field that is now easily accessible for the campus is a very exciting part of Muhlenberg softball’s future. “Having the ability to walk to our field rather than drive is going to feel like a luxury,” summarized Infielder Kaya Mahy ‘25. “It has been hard to watch the greater support that other athletic teams have when they compete on campus compared to ours. To have friends and family easily find our field is going to be a great feeling and support from classmates is bound to increase with the closeness of the field. We play at 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays and 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. on weekends, so people just walking around will be enticed to watch when it is right there. Having a field on campus will make this final season even more special and I can’t wait to get on the new dirt!”
Speaking to the team, it is clear they know what this field means for their team this season, as well as teams to come, and they are selfless in this transition to life on campus. “Having a field on campus means that the hard work on and off the field that our team has consistently carried out is being recognized and celebrated!” commented Infielder Kaitlyn Buurman ‘25. “We are all so excited and grateful to all those involved in making this possibility a reality; our program and Muhlenberg athletics as a whole will only grow with this new addition in between Varsity Field and Scotty Wood Stadium. Getting to play the sport that has brought me to this school on the very grounds of the campus was something I never dreamed of, and now that it is happening, I can not wait to represent Muhlenberg across my jersey in my senior season this spring.”
“This project, along with the baseball project at Bicentennial Park, will give our student-athletes quality playing facilities.”
Looking back, Mahy also shared her favorite memory from her and the team’s time at the Creek. “Even though I am thrilled about the new field, the Creek has been home for three years and I will miss playing there. My favorite memory at the Creek was freshmen year sweeping McDaniel on Senior Day. It was the final doubleheader of the regular season and we went into that day knowing we needed to give it our all and that these games decided the fate of our season. We did it and secured a spot in the Centennial Conference tournament, where we went on to win the championship. The team and our families and friends celebrated in the parking lot and it is a day I will never forget.” Although bittersweet, the legacies of the teams that competed off-campus will not cease to influence future generations of Muhlenberg softball players.
As Buurman said, “The Creek is the type of place that has helped shape Muhlenberg softball into the program that it is today.”
According to Tubman, “There are many factors that make it difficult to determine a true completion date. However, we are hoping for a mild winter and that construction goes smoothly so the team can begin practicing and playing on the field in early April.” So, Muhlenberg community, when the time comes to support Muhlenberg softball, make your way out to the new stadium!
Evan is a media and communication major minoring in creative writing and journalism with a passion for sports writing as well as soccer, being outdoors and spending time with close friends and family. He is eager to continue learning about and tinkering with writing while learning from the talented Weekly staff.
