The past few days have brought long-awaited warmth and sun to Happy Valley, but not baseball, arguably the most indispensable element of spring.

Beaver Field, where the Nittany Lions usually hit line drives, has quite a problem this year. Between 10 and 15 inches of snow lay on the home court -- snow that's accumulated since December.

Last weekend, the Lions were scheduled to host Clarion and Drexel in two doubleheaders, and all games were cancelled due to the snow-covered field.

Mother Nature's recent attempts at melting the white stuff have made a dent in the drifts, but Athletic Field Supervisor Bob Hudzik said there's not much that can be done, besides wait.

"There's just something about baseball and snow," he said. "Baseball and snow don't work well together. The ground is not frozen, so any equipment used to move snow could jeopardize the condition of the field."

Hudzik added that the baseball coaches probably wouldn't sacrifice the condition of the field just to play the first few games of the season.

Coach Joe Hindelang knows he can't control the weather. Before he can play any baseball games, he must play the waiting game.

And this game will continue until the field is ready. Ready means disappearance of the snow, as well as drying up of the water-logged field. Hindelang is already considering the cancellation of next week's games, when his team is scheduled to host Towson State and Ohio State. However, no final decisions have been made.

Since Beaver Field is out of the question, there is no place to practice outside, either. Practice times are limited, too. Hindelang is not able to schedule practices late in the afternoon because there are no indoor facilities available. This has been a been an adjustment for everyone.

"We'd play in the backyard of someone's house if they'd let us," starting lefthander Randy Geis said. "We're lucky to have the facilities to practice inside at Holuba Hall."

Lucky is an interesting way to describe 5:45 a.m. practices, lasting two hours, five days a week. But he and his teammates make do.

It's especially difficult to deal with such poor arrangements after experiencing baseball at its finest, an opportunity the team had over spring break. The Lions played 10 games at Texas A & M's C.E. "Pat" Olsen Field and Texas' Dischfalk Field. Both stadiums are ranked by Division I coaches as No. 3 and No. 4 in the country.

"They were incredible facilities, especially Texas A & M," Hindelang said. "The way baseball is run at those facilities is the way football is run here."

The Lions won four of those 10 games down south, two at the the Aggie Continental Classic, including a 6-1 victory over No. 13 Texas A & M. Catcher Derek Ryder and third baseman Lance Rathmell were named to the all-tournament team.

Ryder is pleased with the honor, but he would rather be playing ball outside, enjoying warmer temperatures.

"Hopefully I can continue that way for the rest of the season," he said. "But it's pretty tough to get yourself motivated when there's all that snow on the ground."

Fortunately, the Lions have away games this weekend. They travel to Purdue for their first four conference games of the season.