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Local Voices

Bayless School District Reviving Sports Program

Bayless High School hasn’t fielded a track team since the early 1980s.  In the fall of 2012, its boys soccer team placed third in the Missouri State championship despite not having a suitable field at the school on which to practice or play games.  That will all change next year when the school completes a $1.1 million upgrade to its outdoor athletic facilities, including a new synthetic turf soccer field.  Byrne & Jones Sports, a division of Byrne & Jones Construction, is currently preparing the site to install the soccer field, a new polyurethane track and make other improvements.  The new field also presents the opportunity for the district to offer football and lacrosse at the school.   

“We have a tradition of playing great soccer at Bayless, but every one of our games has been a road game,” said Ron Tucker, superintendent of the Bayless School District.  “We’ve come up with a plan to make the best use of our limited real estate that not only improves our overall sports program but creates a great asset for our school and the communities we serve.”  Tucker says the soccer field can be converted to host games for football and lacrosse – two sports not currently offered by Bayless.   He also envisions opening up the field for marching band competitions and renting it to other schools to generate revenue for the district.

The eight-lane synthetic track surrounding the soccer field will replace a rarely used cinder track.  In addition, the capital improvements will repair an existing retaining wall that runs the length of one side of the soccer field.  

“What’s really great for the community is that residents will be able to use the track as well,” noted Tucker. “Byrne & Jones has been exceptional to work with to improve our athletic facilities and ultimately make our community a better place to live.” 

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The soccer field will be completed in time for the girls Spring 2014 soccer season.  The track will completed in May 2014.

The new athletic surfaces will be used by both Bayless High School, which has 540 students, and Bayless Middle School, which has 360 students.  There are a total of 1,640 students in the Bayless School District.

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Founded in 1977, St. Louis-based Byrne & Jones Construction is the region’s largest commercial paving contractor and services its clients through four divisions -- four divisions – concrete, sports, asphalt and microsurfacing.   The firm builds and maintains parking lots, roads and highways, athletic fields, running tracks, tennis courts, underground drainage systems and paved surfaces.  The company employs 140 people at its headquarters at 11745 R Lackland Road in Maryland Heights, Mo.   Learn more at www.byrneandjones.com.

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