MECHANICSBURG — Student-athletes, coaches and parents have plenty of questions regarding the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on high school sports.
The Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) did its best to answer some of them this week.
In an expansive press release covering a multitude of topics, the state’s sports governing body put together their answers to a series of frequently asked questions that they had received — and delivered some important bits of news in the process.
First off, the PIAA dispelled rumors that high school seniors that lost out on their spring sports season would be granted an extra year of eligibility, similar to what the NCAA has done.
“The repeating of a grade for athletic purposes is not permitted,” the PIAA said, adding that because students are still enrolled in online classes that this spring counts as part of their eight-semester rule.
In short, the athletic careers for all baseball, softball and track and field seniors have officially concluded.
For the underclassmen, however, the PIAA did its best to outline a plan for the fall sports season. While admitting that the final call is ultimately in the hands of the Governor’s Office, Department of Health and Department of Education, fall sports are scheduled to begin as planned at this point in time.
And while it may not matter, the season is scheduled to begin one week later — on August 28 — than it has in years past.
The PIAA was stern in its ruling that any travel or club programs, including those that aren’t sanctioned by the association, are currently not permitted.
“Governor Wolf stated clearly that all sports, professional, non-professional and amateur have closed; this would include travel or club programs.”
To that end, the PIAA announced that any out-of-season school-related activities remain banned until at least June 30.
“As stated in the press release of April 9, while the PIAA remains hopeful that summer activities will be able to commence July 1, it is still too early to reach any decisions or offer guidance at this time.”
Can teams plan to attend camps as scheduled, such as the basketball camps at St. Bonaventure? The PIAA says that it is still too early to tell, but if it is ultimately allowed by health officials that it would then be in the hands of the individual school or camp to decide if it is safe to do so.
To help athletes stay in shape, the PIAA said that coaches are permitted to “provide guidance on the types of workouts and skills that individuals from their team can complete on a voluntary basis from home.”
Coaches are not, however, allowed to enforce any such workouts or punish players for not participating.
Those coaches are also banned from holding any youth camps on school grounds — a popular summer event for elementary aged students — until July 1, as well.
Exceptions can be made if the coach runs the camp separate from any school affiliation.
“If a coach runs a youth camp as an individual private citizen separate from any school association, they would be subject to the guidelines/timelines as detailed by Governor Wolf,” the PIAA said. “If the order were to change, further guidance would be provided.”
Finally, with the winter sports season ending prematurely, the PIAA also answered questions regarding the Competition Formula for basketball.
Though the formula’s impact has been minimal in District 9 since it was enacted, it does factor into what teams local schools play in the state playoffs and is designed to balance competition in the classes, particularly for smaller public schools in rural areas that do not bring in athletic transfers.
“PIAA will use results from 2019 Championships in addition to results through the 2020 quarterfinals games to determine which teams have accumulated six points over the two-year cycle,” the association said. “Additionally, those teams identified will be required to confirm athletic transfers they received based on data they supplied to PIAA.”
And speaking of transfers, the PIAA ruled that students who transferred and had to sit out this spring sports season will not have to do so again next year even though no games were played in 2020. This season will count as their period of ineligibility.
A full document of frequently asked questions — including answers to inquries about academic eligibility and ticket refunds — can be found at https://uswpm12.newsmemory.com/bradfordera/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2020/04/PIAA_Frequently20Asked20Questions.841bcfe8beeb95390e4aa165e3eba770.pdf
