The coaches of the Mars Area High School varsity baseball team would like their team to play where the district's other varsity teams do -- in the athletic complex.

Brian Hobaugh, head coach, and Andy Bednar, assistant coach, gave a presentation to the school board June 2 on revitalizing the baseball field at the middle school, which is adjacent to the Mars Athletic Complex, and bringing it up to standards for the varsity team.

Currently, the ninth-grade team plays on the field. The varsity team plays at Marburger Field in Mars.

"They should be playing at the Mars Athletic Complex," Mr. Hobaugh said of the varsity team.

When the varsity team played there many years ago, he added, athletes and spectators at track and field events would stay and cheer on the team.

"This would create a home field advantage for our players," he said.

The coaches propose about $200,000 in improvements to the field, including replacing the fence around it, which is curling and rusting in many places. The outfield fence would be 20 feet tall instead of the current 15 feet to protect people running on the nearby track from being hit by a home run ball.

They want to replace the old wooden dugouts with concrete and revitalize the playing surface.

That last task may be a challenge, Superintendent William Pettigrew said, citing four previous unsuccessful attempts to fix the drainage problems on that field.

"That area has just been a nightmare for years and years," he said. "I know you want to stay on the spot, but there's really no flexibility there. The problem really lies in the drainage of the infield."

Dr. Pettigrew said it had been several years since the last attempt, and perhaps technology had improved during that time. He encouraged the coaches to continue the study.