Columbus County man builds baseball field

He built it and they’re still coming. Disappointed by the lack of nearby baseball fields a Columbus County man built his own.

After Williams Township Elementary in Columbus County burned down two years ago, it had to rebuild over two of its baseball fields. That’s when local little league coach dean benton took matters into his own hands.

Dean Benton said, “I built this field for my son and anyone else who wants to come out here and practice and play.”

“After the school burnt and they took the spaces we had for practicing baseball, for a parking lot, it was kind of limited for where we had to practice. And so i come out here and my mom let me use her land to make a ball field.”

Benton spent six months clearing the land. A team fundraiser bought the backstop and the local school donated the clay to put around the bases.

Williams Township little leaguer Ethan Barnhill said, “Good cut grass, good clay around the bases, it’s really nice.”

Madison Benton is Bentont’s son. He said, “We just love it a lot. It’s real fun.”

Without the field Madison and his teammates would have to travel twenty minutes to practice. Now they can play pretty much whenever they want.

Other little leaguers said, “I’m glad Mr. Dean built this. We get to all play on this field. We all share it. It’s really fun.”

It’s fun for the kids and a chance for dean to share his love with the next generation.

Benton said, “I love baseball. It’s always been a passion of mine ever since I was about eight years old. I really enjoy it and I’m just thankful I can pass on what I’ve learned over the years to my son and other kids now.”

Benton says other teams are starting to practice on his field but he hasn’t hosted any games yet. He hopes the community will build more fields so more kids can play ball.