A new turf football field probably is the most visible sports facility at the new Talawanda High School, but all of the school’s sports will be playing on new surfaces.

The one exception to that as the new school year opens this fall is field hockey, which will not be able to get onto their new field since the hot, dry summer has prevented grass from growing there.

As for the turf field which will be used by football, two soccer teams and the band, everything is ready to go.

“The turf field is going to be unique for Talawanda,” new athletic director Jason Grunkemeyer said. “Coming from a grass field, this will certainly be a great surface to play on. That is the biggest overall change for our student athletes.”

Construction of the new school also brought about new sports facilities, which will impress fans and visitors alike. Grunkemeyer said he hopes they also will inspire young athletes to new levels of greatness.

“Any time you have new facilities, it creates a buzz, a new level of excitement,” he said. “Competing and playing in these facilities will make some come here. The numbers and excitement will encourage our athletic history. Additionally, the thing I hope this place does, too, is I hope it gives a new mental appeal for the community and our athletes. With the new facilities, hopefully, we will go about putting a first-class team and program behind that.”

Winning the final Fort Ancient Valley Conference all-sports trophy last year was an indication of sports excellence at Talawanda, but the football team has suffered through poor seasons lately and new coach J.D. Vonderheide hopes to lead the Braves to new levels of accomplishment.

“When I was looking at the job, I said the facilities won’t win us one game or gain us 1 yard,” Vonderheide said. “I knew the (money for the) field turf was raised by people in the community. That shows support. The facilities give the kids a chance to be successful. The weight room, the field turf, the meeting space all give the kids a chance to learn.”

It’s not just the football field that is new, however. New tennis courts give coach Pete Thomas reason to cheer and the new gymnasium is a beautiful, modern facility that will impress anyone who steps into it for the first time.

Thomas said the new high school offers five tennis courts, which means that all five events can be held at the same time, as opposed to the four courts being used at the Oxford Country Club in recent years.

“It will cut home matches by at least an hour. Having five courts will be tremendous,” Thomas said, adding other teams are impressed with the facilities and are willing to come to Oxford.

“Several years ago, we had Little Miami here for a match. It was getting dark by the time we finished. The next day, we played at Norwood and it took less time to go down and back (than it took playing at home the day before),” Thomas said.

Grunkemeyer said the hot, dry summer put part of the new sports facilities behind schedule since grass could not be made to grow. The baseball, softball and field hockey fields cannot be used since they do not have grass growing on them. Field hockey, a fall sport, will not be able to use the new facility and will use several fields this year.

“With the summer we’ve had, it’s just a bunch of dirt and weeds,” the AD said.

The gymnasium has another face most will not see which gets high marks from girls’ basketball coach Kim Richter. There is an auxiliary gym.

“One of the nicest things for us, as a team, is having the extra court. If we want to work with the varsity full court, the other court is available,” Richter said. “The other thing we like is the air conditioning. It made (summer) camp a lot easier. We still work during the summer, as a winter sport, we can focus on basketball and not get overheated.”

The football facility may be the focal point and Vonderheide hopes to overcome any lingering mental effects of the 1-19 record over the past two years.

“I told the kids, (the new field) is a chance to etch their names in history,” he said. “It’s a chance to win the first game on the new field, make the first tackle, the first completion.”

Richter expressed appreciation to residents for approving construction of the new school and probably spoke for all the school’s coaches and athletes.

“We are appreciative for the building from the community. Everybody makes sacrifices for this building being built for the students,” she said. “We do not take it for granted. The girls are super excited. It’s a blessing to have such a nice facility.”