After One Week Of Use, RHS Field Submerged Again

– By Jim Byrne –

Between the March 2 flood that displaced Rye's lacrosse teams from Nugent Stadium and the challenge of a Class A schedule for Class C programs, the Garnets have had their hands full this season.

And then came the Nor'easter.

"It's been an entertaining spring, hasn't it?" said girls' lacrosse head coach Maureen O'Shea. "I guess I knew it was too good to be true when we got the field back so quickly. We finally got to practice there Monday and Tuesday, we played Wednesday and Friday and then, bingo, a Nor'easter."

After March 2's flood, the cost of repair for the field was $125,000. That amount was covered by the school's insurance policy with the New York State Schools Insurance Reciprocal, but the District still had to pay a $25,000 deductible. Rye High sports teams returned to the field Monday, April 9, over a month after the flooding occurred. If the damage done from April’s Nor’easter is similar, the Garnets would not be able to return until at least mid-May.

“We were terribly disappointed that the turf field flooded again and that the damage that was repaired last week is now at least as significant or worse than last time,” said Superintendent Dr. Ed Shine at the April 17 Board of Education meeting.

Shine said that it could be a significant amount of time before anyone gets back on the field. There are now issues with the ground beneath the carpet, as its integrity may have been lost. The vendor for the field visted after the flood, and said that all options must be considered. His recommendation was to at least hire an engineer consultant to look into the issue.

Boys' lacrosse head coach Brian Dooley fully expects to play the remainder of the season on the road.

"The damage to Nugent Stadium is extremely extensive, but the most important thing is that everything gets back to shape with the school and the District," said Dooley. "If you look at the damage done to some of the homes in Rye, you understand that that's the most important thing. Sports are definitely fun and all, but this has been devastating for everyone."

This is the third time — and second time in six weeks — that Nugent Stadium has flooded since the installation of the field turf. The original time occurred right after the turf was installed in August 2004, four days shy of the first game scheduled to take place on it. There was no damage that time, but on March 2 the flooding caused the turf to shift and buckle. Parts of the field had to be replaced, and rubber and sand were brought in to refill parts of the ground that were altered.