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Saturday, December 1, 2007
The Mecca
Greater Reading, PA
By: Michael J. Esterly
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Photo(s) By: Kyle Danztler/MyActionPortraits.com
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Atop the hills of Morgantown sits the pride of Twin Valley’s Raiders:
According to Webster, mecca is “a place regarded as the center for a specified group, activity or interest.” Well, you have only to travel to the southern corner of Berks County to find a sparkling mecca, a crown jewel sitting atop the hill at Twin Valley High School.
The Twin Valley school board and administration devised the plans for constructing their state-of-the-art field house two years ago. With the rapid growth of the Morgantown area, better facilities for the school were needed. The field house was their dream, and it became a reality on September 17.
Yes, Twin Valley’s new 4,400 sq. ft. state-of-the-art field house is open for business. This palatial building sits proudly next to the athletic complex which hosts an array of sports, including soccer and football. The new facility is a welcoming beacon to athletes and fans alike.
The field house greets both home and away teams with spacious locker rooms. Officials also have the luxury of their own locker room. The second floor houses the latest equipment in the fitness and weight rooms. “We are averaging 50 students a day, both boys and girls,” noted Brad Burrows who is the strength and conditioning trainer at Twin Valley.
Also located on the second floor is a multi-purpose room, which serves as a classroom for wellness and fitness for the physical education department. The football and soccer teams have used the room for chalk talks. The school has welcomed community groups such as the Rotary Club who held a breakfast there after touring the new facility. Raider athletic director John Guiseppe noted, “We have three scheduled events here for football night where PTO organizations will be coming to watch the game.” Guiseppe also added that there’ll be a cookout so the groups will be able to enjoy their food while watching the football game with a bird’s eye view of the field.
But there’s more. The Raiders upgraded their field to a synthetic turf grass. With this addition, the junior high and senior high teams all get to play on the field. The seating within the sports complex increased in capacity by 500, giving them a total of 2,000 seats for fans and spectators. Sounds like a lot, but their first football game of the season exceeded that capacity by 400. Wow! The Raiders no longer have to use Central Catholic’s stadium, which had sometimes been the case. Twin Valley now has an entire sports complex to utilize and be proud of.
“In turn what is going to happen, is the morale of the students and the community is going to grow, along with the attitude that we now have the facilities we need to start stepping up our sports,” said Guiseppe. With state-of-the-art facilities, student athletes now have the luxury of having everything at their disposal. Kirsten Lill, a member of the Raider girls varsity soccer team, said “The new field house and turf field have made it easier and more convenient for the school athletes to stay in shape for the sports they play.” She added, “The students are more enthused about getting in shape and are excited about Twin Valley athletics.”
Most of you will remember the famous quote: “If you build it, they will come.” Just like in the movie “Field of Dreams,” the baseball field was built and people came. Some came to play; many more came to watch. It happened in Iowa; it’s happening in Morgantown.
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