OA’s fall sports season will start next week with Covid-19 restrictions and social distancing measures in place. Without football.
Covid has caused all high school sports to be delayed, and there are many unanswered questions surrounding it. Athletic Director Bill Matthews referenced the MIAA (Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association) for details on practice regulations.
As stated by MIAA, “Cloth or disposable face coverings should be worn throughout each phase when not engaging in physical activity… High risk individuals should not oversee or participate in any workouts.”
In an interview last week Matthews spoke about cancelling volleyball and football because they are considered “high risk” sports. As for functioning teams, he reported that Oliver Ames “will provide buses for all of our team members to away events… we are allowing for parents to… transport their child.”
Spectating at games will also be diminished significantly, with “a limit of 50 spectators per event.”
Lastly, a main point of confusion is how daily practices will work with the separate cohorts. “There is no split on [cohorts] for athletics, so… regardless of what the class schedule is [players] are allowed to practice on any particular day.”