COURT OF APPEALS OF OHIO, EIGHTH DISTRICT COUNTY OF CUYAHOGA NO. 59839 MARY ANN MILLER : : Plaintiff-appellant : : JOURNAL ENTRY vs. : and : OPINION CITY OF BROADVIEW HEIGHTS : : Defendant-appellee : : : DATE OF ANNOUNCEMENT OF DECISION : FEBRUARY 6, 1992 CHARACTER OF PROCEEDING : Civil appeal from : Court of Common Pleas : Case No. 167,470 JUDGMENT : AFFIRMED. DATE OF JOURNALIZATION : _______________________ APPEARANCES: For plaintiff-appellant: MARK M. TERMINI DANIEL D. DOMOZICK Attorneys at Law 1360 West 9 Street, Suite 1220 Cleveland, Ohio 44113 For defendant-appellee: T. CHARLES COOPER Attorney at Law 500 National City/East 6th Bldg. 1965 East Sixth Street Cleveland, Ohio 44114 - 1 - FRANCIS E. SWEENEY, J.: Plaintiff-appellant, Mary Ann Miller, timely appeals the trial court's granting of defendant-appellee City of Broadview Heights' motion for summary judgment in favor of appellee on appellant's negligence complaint. For the reasons set forth below, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. The pertinent facts are as follows: Appellant attended a softball game at a park owned and operated by appellee City of Broadview Heights on July 12, 1987. The park, which contains softball diamonds, soccer fields, tennis courts and other facilities, is held open to the general public free of charge. Appellant paid no admission fee or consideration to view the softball game. While watching her boyfriend play softball, appellant alleges she was struck by a batted ball from an adjacent field. Plaintiff alleges that her boyfriend paid an entrance fee to participate in the Broadview Heights Men's Softball League. On April 5, 1989, appellant filed a complaint alleging that appellee was negligent in the design and placement of its soft- ball fields, grandstands and fences. Appellant also alleged - 2 - appellee acted recklessly and wantonly with a disregard for plaintiff's welfare. Appellee filed an answer and a motion for summary judgment contending that appellant was a "recreational user" pursuant to R.C. 1533.181 and, therefore, appellee is exempt from liability under the "recreational user" statute. The trial court granted appellee's motion for summary judgment. Appellant now timely appeals, raising one assignment of error for our review. THE TRIAL COURT ERRED IN GRANTING APPELLEE'S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT. Appellant argues that she was not a "recreational user" since her boyfriend's softball team paid an entrance fee to participate in the Broadview Heights Men's Softball League. This argument is without merit. R.C. 1533.181, the "recreational user" statute, provides: (A) no owner, lessee, or occupant of pre- mises: (1) Owes a duty to a recreational user to keep the premises safe for entry or use; (2) Extends an assurance to a recrea- tional user, through the act of giving permission, that the pre- mises are safe for entry or use; (3) Assumes responsibilities for or incurs liability for any injury to person or property caused by any act of a recreational user. A "recreational user" is defined in R.C. 1533.181 as ". . . a person to whom permission has been granted, without the payment - 3 - of a fee or consideration to the owner, lessee, or occupant of the premises . . . to enter upon premises to . . . engage in other recreational pursuits." The Ohio Supreme Court recently held that watching a softball game on a municipal field is a recreational pursuit within the scope of R.C. 1533.181. LiCause v. Canton (1989), 42 Ohio St. 3d 109, 110. In LiCause, as in the present case, the plaintiff entered the municipal field without paying an admission fee to watch a softball game. Id. Therefore, we find that appellant was a "recreational user" as defined in R.C. 1533.181 since she paid no consideration to watch a softball game which was held open to the general public free of charge. Accordingly, the trial court did not err in granting appellee's motion for summary judgment on the ground that appellee was entitled to the protection of the "recreational user" statute. Assignment of Error I is overruled. Judgment affirmed. - 4 - It is ordered that appellee recover of appellant its costs herein taxed. The Court finds there were reasonable grounds for this appeal. It is ordered that a special mandate issue out of this Court directing the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas to carry this judgment into execution. A certified copy of this entry shall constitute the mandate pursuant to Rule 27 of the Rules of Appellate Procedure. NAHRA, P.J. JAMES D. SWEENEY, J. CONCUR JUDGE FRANCIS E. SWEENEY N.B. This entry is made pursuant to the third sentence of Rule 22(D), Ohio Rules of Appellate Procedure. This is an announce- ment of decision (see Rule 26). Ten (10) days from the date hereof, this document will be stamped to indicate journaliza- tion, at which time it will become the judgment and order of the court and time period for review will begin to run. .