High school sports in SC staying sidelined for now
The spring high school sports seasons in South Carolina continue to hold on by a thread.
The S.C. High School League’s Executive Committee opted Thursday to hold off on canceling the season.
Schools around the state haven’t been in session since March 16 because of the coronavirus pandemic and will at least be out until April 30, according S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster’s ruling last week. That means the postponement of spring sports remains in effect at least through April 30.
The SCHSL, which governs public school sports, will wait and follow the government’s lead in the matter. If school is not in session, no practices or games can take place.
“As long as there is hope for school, there is hope for play,” SCHSL commissioner Jerome Singleton said. “... The governor and state education department move forward in their decision making, they have been gracious to keep us in the loop and we will continue to plan. Everyday that goes by, we got to adjust that plan.”
State schools superintendent Molly Spearman on Tuesday said the “appropriate decision” would be made in the coming weeks regarding what schools will do in May.
“I’m praying for a miracle,” Spearman said. “Maybe a miracle will happen and we will not have to postpone schools any longer.”
Some states already have canceled school for the rest of the year, including Alabama, Arizona, California, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Vermont and Virginia.
The coronavirus impact doesn’t seem to be slowing down. As of Wednesday there have been 1,293 coronavirus cases and 26 deaths in South Carolina, according to S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control.
Even if schools are back in May, it is unlikely a full season can be played. There might be a possibility of having some games to bring closure to the seasons, especially for seniors. Singleton said he and his staff have been working on possible scenarios if games were to continue, with or without a postseason.
“Could it get to a point where playoffs become a challenge and we do don’t get to play the playoffs? All that has to be on the table. What we want to do is give the most kids the opportunities to compete,” Singleton said. “.... Things change everyday. Anything that gives the kids opportunity to compete we want to explore. We don’t want to ignore any piece.”
Singleton said if sports were to continue there would be a chance it might be with limited fan interaction, but the SCHSL would go with whatever the health department guidelines say.
There also was discussion Thursday about coaches being able to virtually meet with their players for conditioning. . That is similar to what college conferences like the Southeastern Conference, PAC-12 and Big 12 are doing. Those conferences allow for two hours of meetings per week.
Singleton hopes to have a plan for that announced possibly next week.
Another SCHSL Executive Committee meeting is scheduled for April 22. That meeting will include rules and regulation changes, budget for next year and election of new officers.
Coaches and athletes from around the Midlands and the rest of the state said last week they were resigned to the likelihood of the cancellation of the season. Athletes are trying to stay in shape with workouts at home because no mandated or organized activities are allowed.
“I think at some point you’ve got to accept it,” Blythewood baseball coach Banks Faulkner said. “These cases aren’t going to level off anytime soon. You sort of saw it coming but I was trying to be optimistic. They had a thing for our seniors when we played in Greenville at Flour Field (March 14) but I was hoping we would just be gone for two weeks and making myself believe it.”
On Thursday evening, the South Carolina Athletic Coaches announced it was canceling North-South All-Star events scheduled for May or June - Lacrosse, Golf, Tennis, Baseball, Softball, Soccer and Clash of the Carolinas Soccer.
The South Carolina Independent Schools Association, which oversees private schools, hasn’t made a ruling on its spring sports. SCISA president Mike Fanning sent out a memo to schools this week that said they are on standby in case the green light is given to restart school. If that happens, SCISA would work closely with member schools to get in as much as activities as possible if there is medical clearance.
Because there aren’t as many schools in SCISA, it might be more feasible to get contests played in a shorter time frame. Possible playoff scenarios for sports such and baseball and softball are a one-day softball single-elimination tournament and two-day baseball single-elimination tourney.
Other scenarios for sports such as golf, tennis and track & field are one-day events.
This story was originally published April 2, 2020 at 10:18 AM.
