BROOKHAVEN — Pioneer Athletics named the Brookhaven School District the winner of the 2023 Fields of Excellence Award. Ole Brook will receive a certificate of recognition and field of excellence to display at their winning field. 

The Fields of Excellence Award was created by Pioneer to recognize the best quality athletic fields and crews who work to keep fields in such great condition. The award program was started in 1997 and has recognized 1,560 fields from around the country since then.  

A rigorous judging process yielded 96 winners this year including Brookhaven High School. 

Reeves Fernald oversees the field crews for Brookhaven School District. He was featured in The Dart last summer and had mentioned the school district won the Field of Excellence Award in 2022. He made a brief comment in reaction to the news Tuesday. 

“The maintenance of the athletic fields are not possible without the support of the school district, athletic director, maintenance director, and maintenance department,” Fernald said. “The athletics maintenance crew is made up of myself, Dez Coleman, and Cody Barrett.”