While the exposed ceilings and closed-off classrooms may be the most
prominent signs of construction inside the school, the renovation has
had an influence both at school and at practice for fall sports players.
According to field hockey captain Maddie O’Beirne, senior, one of the
challenges that the construction has created for the teams is the loss
of a third field to practice on.
“There’s no grass field in the back now,” she said.
She added that all of the teams and organizations that use the fields
for practice after school sometimes have to fight over field space and
practice time, since there is less room now.
Another impact is a daily struggle for parking space at practices and games due to the renovation.
“The bus situation gets harder because there’s less parking,” O’Beirne said. “We have to come ready earlier.”
Home games also complicate other teams’ schedules now that there is less practice space.
“When field hockey has a home game,” she said, “it affects the other teams’ practice times.”
Other than a loss of practice and parking space, O’Beirne said, “construction hasn’t really affected [field hockey] that much.”
Similarly, not all teams have faced a great impact. According to junior
Luke Dziedzic, some teams have barely felt the renovation.
“The construction at Marshall has not affected the golf team at all,” he said.
Similarly, according to cheer coach Kelly Bresnahan, the renovations have not had many impacts on cheer.
“The football players have to travel through the gym to get to their lockers, which can sometimes be disruptive,” she said.
Otherwise, though, Bresnahan said there were no real effects.
However, junior Gelare Ghajar-Rahimi said she has noticed many impacts on the cross-country team.
“Usually we run around the school,” she said. “We have to change our routes to avoid construction equipment.”
Some health concerns associated with the renovation have changed
the way that the members of cross-country have been practicing.
“In the summer, with all the dust, it got hard to breathe,”
Ghajar-Rahimi said. “Some people on our team with asthma and other
health issues had to take extra precautions because of that.”
The other major impact Ghajar-Rahimi said has affected the team is the
presence of debris on the school campus from the construction.
“With rocks and dirt in the way, you have to make sure you don’t step in
a ditch,” she said. She also advised runners to be careful to avoid
obstacles.
Still, Ghajar-Rahimi said the team is “pretty versatile.”
Other than the obstacles and other physical challenges, the volleyball
team has noticed “nonstop” loud jackhammer sounds during practice,
according to freshman Kimberly Herd.
Herd noted that the noises make it difficult to hear instructions and other comments.
“It’s really hard to communicate to other players,”she said. “The coach has to yell louder over the construction.”