They used words and phrases like “unknowns,” “fluid and scary,” “unforeseeable challenges,” “uncharted territory” and “limbo.”
Sometimes the athletic directors of the local high schools were at a loss for words to describe their reaction and feelings to the suspension of spring sports on Friday, March 13, 2020, due to the threat of the coronavirus.
Will C. Wood Athletic Director Andrea Daniels noted, “It’s just the timing. It’s right when we are starting, so you’re in the flow, you’ve had your preseason and a lot of your practice sessions. But they (the student-athletes) all have a good attitude. It is what it is. We have to do what we have to do.”
“It’s sad but you have to remember that you might be able to fight this off, but you could be a carrier for someone who cannot handle it, could pick it up from you,” said Vanden High Athletic Director Matthew Bidou. “So safety is the first issue in all sports related to Vanden High School.”
Stu Clary, one of the athletic directors at Vacaville High and the head baseball coach, said, “With all the kids I think about the time they spent in fall ball and the eight weeks we spend in the weight room and conditioning and all the work that they put in to be able to make the team. And now five games in the plug is pulled. It’s tough for them, but at the same time, you can’t really feel sorry for yourself. If our not playing and everybody isolating means that somebody’s grandma gets to live another ten years, it’s for the greater good. I don’t think that’s lost on anyone.”
He added, “It’s just weird and unprecedented. They’re still our guys. You just want to reach out and hang out and talk, but you just can’t right now.”
That’s because on Friday, March 13, the Vacaville Unified School District Superintendent not only closed schools but also forbade coaches to meet individually or in groups with any of their athletes. The same was true for the Travis Unified School District, which governs schools like Vanden High.
The area’s two private high schools — Vacaville Christian and Buckingham Charter — shut down sports as well.
Vacaville Christian Athletic Director Donna Hagans said, “It’s more like a halt at this time. The CIF and the Sierra Delta League recommend following Gov. Newsom’s encouragement/recommendation to shelter in place. So at this time, we have zero contact with our athletes. No team and no individual.”
Two Vacaville High teams were fortunate in that they got to not only play Friday afternoon games but also to meet as a team and discuss the regulations handed down by the district. That’s because when the coaches got the word on Friday around 1 p.m., the Heritage High baseball and softball teams were already en route to Vacaville from Brentwood, so the games were played.
“We had a talk with the kids at the end of the game,” Clary said. “I filled them in on everything that I knew and I told them about the memo that we received. The directive from the district is that staff should not be meeting with any students regardless of group size. So there are no practices, no team meetings, nothing. And there’s a lot of uncertainty.”
One of the most common questions that athletic directors were fielding was whether the athletes could have gotten together and practiced off-campus.
Bidou said, “I’m pretty much telling them no coach from Vanden is going to run any kind of practice or gathering or anything under the umbrella of Vanden High School because it’s not allowed. We’ve put that totally off-limits.”
“When you play a sport, it’s so boring being at home and not doing anything,” Daniels said. “So they’re asking, ‘Coach, can I have an individual session? Coach, can you open up the cages? Coach, can you open up the field?’”
Even Daniels’ own players (she is the girls head soccer coach) were asking if she could open up the field so they could come out and train.
“Can’t do it, ” she told them. “We’re so bored too, so it would be great to get these sessions in. It’s tough for the kids. But they understand it’s for our safety, so they’re respectful. But they’re just anxious.”
Another common question was — when would sports resume?
On Tuesday, March 17, the 10 CIF section commissioners met in Sacramento to discuss that very topic. The group decided to wait until April 3 until they moved forward. The NCAA had already canceled spring sports for the 2020-21 school year.
If the Governor’s speculation that school would not reopen in the spring was correct, then prep sports would not resume at all. But nothing was certain.
“When we are going to be able to resume is a total unknown,” Bidou said.
The Vacaville Unified, Fairfield Unified and Travis Unified school districts all announced on Wednesday, March 18, that schools would not resume until at least April 20.
That turned out to be overly optimistic, as schools remained closed to on-campus learning through the remainder of the term.
There were many nuances regarding the resumption of athletics.
If there are restrictions on gathering size, will that mean that softball and baseball games will be played without spectators? And what about swimming and track meets, where the participants, coaches and officials alone number over 100?
Some travel and summer baseball and softball teams were already advertising for spring sign-ups, as they realized that student-athletes were looking to keep active. But if the athletes actually compete in a game with those teams, they become ineligible to compete if the high schools start playing ball again. Scrimmages are a grey area for those non-school teams, so Clary was advising anyone who went that route to not participate in any activity that involves two teams.
Beyond that, Clary, Bidou and all the athletic directors were more concerned about the health of their athletes and were not encouraging them to meet in any large numbers outside of school for any activity, per the shelter-in-place guidelines.
“We feel very bad for the juniors in spring sports,” said Bidou, “because the seniors already have their colleges (selected)… But above anything, it’s all about safety. Nothing else is going to move the cart forward… Everybody needs to do the right thing now so we don’t have to revisit this.”
Clary noted that even the rain created an odd situation.
“It’s just really weird,” he said. “Usually in the baseball season when it’s raining, we go in the classroom or we go in the hallways or we go to the indoor hitting facilities. We’re not sitting around watching Netflix.”
Daniels noted, “Everyone’s going through the same things. I’m just glad that everyone’s being safe and careful.”
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A look back: When the virus shut down high school sports - Vacaville Reporter
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