Dryden High School installs new turf field

Dryden High School has undergone and is still undergoing many upgrades to both its athletic and educational facilities. After initially not being included in the plans, the town approved the installation of a multipurpose turf field to replace the grass surface several teams played on. That field, pending some finishing touches, has been installed and will be ready for use come the fall season.

Following the approval of the initial improvements to Dryden, a separate town vote was held on Dec. 10 regarding Volante Field. Over 60% of residents voted in favor of the field’s improvements, and the project began. Dryden varsity football head coach Justin Wood recalled that night.

“The night that the votes were being calculated, I had asked the district clerk to keep me in the loop just to let me know,” Wood said. “Being kind of a lifelong Dryden resident and now, I work in the school, my kids go to the school, paying taxes in the school and all those different things, I didn’t see it as something that was even in negotiations for the town.”

Volante Field now features vibrant purple end zones that read “Dryden” on one side and “Lions” on the other. Aside from the aesthetic improvement, it’s now much safer for the athletes considering how often the field will be used. During the fall season, there could be up to four football and soccer games each on the field, and wear and tear won’t be an issue. Wood feels this puts the town in a position to host big athletic events.

“We’re in a good spot where we could host IAC Championships and sectionals again for spring track, and we could host a weekend lacrosse tournament because we have a variety of turf and grass fields now,” Wood said. “The hundreds of parents and family members that are going to come into town, they’re going to buy things from local shops and eat at local restaurants. They’re going to gas up before they head back home.”

Wood added that the new field puts Dryden ahead of other similarly sized schools in Section IV when it comes to potentially hosting championships, which is something “the community can be proud of.”

As the varsity football coach at Dryden, this will obviously have a big impact on Wood’s team. He touched on what improvements he’ll directly experience thanks to the turf.

“Having access to a turf field, it’s as good as any field around, allows us to play faster, move faster and gives us a better vantage point for filming practice,” Wood said. “We still have access to our grass practice field, and we’ve shared that with the modified team for the past several years. So, if we were trying to run a 100-yard two-minute offense, then we’d have to tell the mods that they’re going to go do some sled work or something off to the side so that we can take the field. We don’t have to do that anymore.”

Wood has been in contact with his team and can feel the anticipation building from both parents and players as the possible start of the season Sept. 21 approaches.

“The players and the parents are very, very excited,” Wood said. “There’s been a lot of talk about it. They’re all just talking about how excited they are to finally play on the field and get to practice on the field. They don’t care when it is; they just want to play. I know there’s going to be as big a crowd as is allowed when we’re able to play, and I know we’re all pushing and planning for that.”

Regardless of whether a fall athletics season happens, just having the opportunity to hold a practice on the new field is a big deal for Wood.

“If we can get the players to follow all the rules and guidelines that are put forth and make sure that we’re using proper sanitation processes and just get the kids in the weight room and get them down the field running some routes and do some different things, it’s going to be huge,” Wood said. “The kids have been really doing their best to just maintain a positive attitude and keep training and keep moving forward.”

Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s decision to allow in-person schooling to take place in New York means a fall athletics season is still potentially in the cards. When that time does come, Dryden is prepared for a heavy amount of activity on the new look Volante Field.