BOZEMAN, Mont. – Gallatin Valley high schools are gearing up for an exciting new addition to their athletic programs.
Baseball is set to be offered as a sport for students at Bozeman High and Gallatin High.
This announcement was made during a school board meeting on Monday.
It comes after a strong community demand for baseball at the high school level in Montana.
Mark Ator, the Bozeman School District Athletic Director, spoke about the effort behind this development.
“M-H-S-A added baseball as a sport a few years ago, and it’s grown in the state of Montana, and we have quite a strong baseball community in the city of Bozeman,” said Ator. “About a year’s worth of work and it ended with the Bozeman school board approving the addition of baseball for Bozeman High and Gallatin High.”
Both high schools will have their own varsity and junior varsity baseball teams.
However, the question of where these teams will practice and play remains.
“Right now, our plan is to practice and play games at Hero’s park, our legion field,” Ator said. “We’ve been working with the Legion; we have a short-term agreement in place right now. We’re still working on plans, what a long-term facility might look like, hero’s park or if there’s any other options.”
Ator expressed confidence that introducing baseball will boost student engagement in school sports.
“Anytime you create more opportunities for kids to participate, it’s a good thing,” he said. “We’ve had kids express interest and I expect a good turnout at both schools.”
The high school baseball season is set to begin with the first day of practice on March 16.