We are halfway through what would have been the high school and youth sports winter season. At this time, I would have been writing about our Hull teams and looking forward to possible state tournament berths etc.
It has taken this long to move on from the sad fact that our teams are not playing winter sports, while other towns around us did not cancel their seasons. We have accepted our fate and take consolation in knowing that the next sports season, the newly created Fall 2, is just a month away.
Or is it?
With coronavirus numbers as high as they have ever been, the Fall 2 season, which is essentially the football season that was cancelled in the fall, is not a guarantee. In Hull, football and indoor track are in line to be the next COVID-19 casualties.
Much like the winter season, the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association has a few hurdles to clear before firing the starting gun for the next season, which is scheduled to begin on Feb. 22 and end on April 25. The MIAA COVID Task force must develop coronavirus guidelines, which then must be approved by the Sports Medicine Committee, then approved by the MIAA.
“There are several meetings this week and next that will determine what happens. For Hull, it would be football, indoor track, and possibly sideline cheer or girls’ volleyball that will be affected,” says Hull High School athletic director Scott Paine. Presently, the football team and the indoor track team do not have a schedule in place. And if the football season does take place as planned, new COVID-19 guidelines and post-season playoff structure still need to be discussed and planned.
If we dare project further than Fall 2, the traditional spring season would run from April 26 to the end of June. Will we, can we, still be dealing with this pandemic then? The spring season was the first to be totally cancelled last year. The programs that were affected were Hull High School baseball, softball, boys’ and girls’ lacrosse and boys’ and girls’ outdoor track. Hull Youth travel and in-town soccer were also cancelled.
Youth lacrosse registration
Hull Youth Lacrosse is accepting registrations for the spring season. Boys and girls of all levels in grades one-eight (born between Jan. 2, 2006, and Jan. 1, 2015) are invited to sign up. There is no financial commitment at the time of registration, and lacrosse equipment is available. To register, go to www.hulllax.com
If you have sports news to share, email it to: alanmccall461@hotmail.com. The weekly deadline for information is Tuesday evening at 6 p.m.
