GAMES OVER: IHSAA cancels remainder of spring sports season in Idaho, including state tournaments

Like thousands of other high school athletes, Post Falls High senior Katie Fleming was looking forward to the final sports season of her high school career.

Because, unlike most of the others, she already had to miss part of her high school sports career.

So while the news seemed inevitable, it was still a gut blow of sorts to high school seniors when the Idaho High School Activities Association on Friday announced the cancellation of the remainder of the spring sports season, including the upcoming scheduled state tournaments, due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“It was definitely hard to hear, because due to my ACL tear my sophomore year I had already lost a season of track and a season of basketball,” said Fleming, who recently committed to play basketball at Wenatchee Valley College. “So finding out that my senior year of track was gone, too, was sad and something that can’t be replaced.”

The IHSAA made the call in a vote during a special meeting of the board of directors, taking into account Idaho governor Brad Little’s stay-home order through April 30, the Idaho State Board of Education’s “soft closure” of schools through the end of the school year, and input from member schools saying whether they would even participate in an abbreviated end of the season, and/or a state tournament.

“It was a very reluctant unanimous vote,” IHSAA executive director Ty Jones told The Press. “But when you look at everything that was involved with it, you knew it had to be done. I’d be lying if I said there weren’t probably a couple of tears shed by some people (on the board), when you have to tell kids that they don’t get to participate in things. That’s what we did — we told thousands of kids today that your spring sports seasons are done. Our board did not take that lightly; they were aware that was a very tough decision.”

Spring sports in Idaho had been suspended since mid-March by the IHSAA due to the coronavirus pandemic. Until Friday, the IHSAA had held out hope of returning to play in a shortened season — even perhaps extending the season into the summer.

State events in Idaho in golf, baseball, softball, track and field and tennis were scheduled for the week of May 11-16.

Only a handful of sporting events had been contested by North Idaho teams prior to last month’s suspension of play. Many teams had yet to play their season openers.

“Heartbreaking for coaches and kids, especially our seniors,” Lakeland High track and field coach Brian Etchison said. “Getting to wear your school colors and compete for your community is a special thing. Those kids lost out on an opportunity to do so.”

Jones said the IHSAA sent out a survey to schools 2-3 weeks ago, asking them if they still wanted state tournaments (the vast majority did), how far into the summer would they want to push a state tournament, and what’s the latest students could return to school and still be able to play games.

He said of the school districts that responded, 75-80 percent said they would need to be back in school by May 4 to even consider sending their teams to state. If kids weren’t back in school by May 11, he said 100 percent of the schools said no way to state.

While the SBOE left the possibility of opening schools up to individual school districts, a handful of school districts — none in North Idaho — said they were closed for the year.

“We looked at all those things, which is why we were holding off for as long as we did,” Jones said. “There were people out there saying just call it already. That would be the easy thing to do, but we want to exhaust every possible opportunity that we have — you’re looking at thousands of kids that this impacts. That’s why we held off.”

In phone calls to schools around the state, Jones said “probably 20” told him they would not send their teams to state, regardless.

In conversations with his superiors, Lake City High athletic director Jim Winger said, as far as Lake City and Coeur d’Alene High teams were concerned, “I would say very, very little chance of going (to state events).”

And possibly not even playing a few games locally, in lieu of going to state.

“Until the health officials say differently, I just can’t be responsible for putting hundreds of kids in crammed buses, driving for eight hours, and co-mingling with other athletes from all over the state,” Winger said. “It’s heartbreaking for these senior athletes, that have been working their whole lives for this. It’s heartbreaking for seniors in general. But you have to do what’s right, and in my book, that’s doing what the health officials say.”

Winger said Friday’s news was “more of a closure” for schools, coaches and athletes.

As for whether fall high school sports will start on time, Jones said this pandemic “potentially affects more than just the spring (sports),” and the IHSAA will continue to monitor things over the coming months.

Jones said the IHSAA is well aware of all the implications behind the postponements of college and pro events nationwide and worldwide, with the well-being of athletes and fans in mind.

So is Winger.

“When you can’t play the Masters, how can you play a state high school tournament?” Winger said.