Spring athletes thirsty to compete, waiting on word for IHSA
By FRED KRONER
Spring officially arrives on Thursday.
The debut of spring sports are further down on the horizon.
For the professionals, everything is on an indefinite hiatus, due to the global coronavirus outbreak, but the expectations are that the sports will return in 2020.
All college conferences at every level have already made the unprecedented move to cancel the entire spring sport schedules.
For members of the Illinois High School Association, it’s still a wait-and-see proposition.
There will be no practices or competition through March 30. Some high schools, such as Mahomet-Seymour, have announced there will be no games through April 6.
The hope is that after that date, a gradual resumption will occur, but there are no guarantees.
The Mahomet Daily contacted spring sport coaches from Mahomet-Seymour, St. Joseph-Ogden, Oakwood and Villa Grove/Heritage to hear their perspectives on the situation and what might be in store.
The mandatory break imposed by the IHSA came after nearly two full weeks of workouts in preparation for a season that originally would have included competition starting on Monday, March16 for baseball, soccer, softball, boys’ tennis and track.
Track, however, is in a different situation in that indoor practices began in February and several schools had already competed in meets.
Oakwood baseball coach Ryan McFarland said that if schools do receive a green light to resume activity, it doesn’t mean games will be played immediately.
“I feel whenever we go back, we would need at least a week to get pitchers back into shape,” McFarland said. “Oakwood baseball has played many first games without being on a field before that time, so that’s not as big of a deal as arm care.”
The uncertainty for all coaches is what their athletes are doing during the down time. The teen-agers can work out on their own, but can’t have in-person instruction from their coaches.
“When students don’t have school and their routine is disrupted, coaches are always looking for ways to help them stay on a similar schedule,” VG/Heritage baseball coach Jason Conn said. “This will be like coming back from Christmas break and being thrown into games without practices.
“We were fortunate to be on our field all but two days the first two weeks of practice, so I feel like we got a lot of stuff in other teams that are stuck in a gym may not have.
“Hopefully our players will be able to get out and play catch. Hitting is a little harder if guys don’t have somewhere to go or the equipment for it.”
The ability to play is not the only strike against players.
“What’s hard is we usually encourage our guys to watch baseball and learn the game,” Conn said. “With the MLB delaying their season, they cannot even do that.”
VG/Heritage track and field coach Heath Wilson hopes his squad members are diligent during their time away.
“Staying in shape is very important,” Wilson said. “I have encouraged the athletes to still get in workouts on their own as it is important to maintain the endurance that we were working towards starting in February.
“Coaching the technical aspects of the sport is a greater concern at this time, but we will work through those aspects once we are able to continue the season.”
Wilson hopes his athletes work out individually rather than in groups.
“The safety of the athletes is most important,” he said. “With the guidance of state and national leaders to socially distance ourselves, I will not encourage ‘Captain’s Practices.’
“Athletes are encouraged to get workouts in on their own.”
Conn’s point is one that was also emphasized by M-S baseball coach Nic DiFilippo.
“The guys are not allowed to do team practices,” DiFilippo said. “I do not expect them to work out as groups.
“I know individual kids will work out on their own. My No. 1 goal is when we get back, they are all healthy and safe. We can figure out how best to compete once we get back.”
Oakwood boys’ track and field coach Lyle Hicks said some of the challenges are similar to what are faced in other years.
“We will be set back and starting over somewhat as normal after spring break,” Hicks said. “We gave workouts to athletes and hope they will do some work, but it’s hard to do timed speed work.”
SJ-O softball coach Larry Sparks understands what it will mean to the student-athletes to get back to the games they love.
“The kids were already chomping at the bit to play games, so if and when we’re able to resume, I think they will have immediate focus,” Sparks said.
Like Sparks, VG/Heritage’s Wilson said his athletes are preparing as if there will be a season.
“Villa Grove athletes are thirsty to compete,” Wilson said. “They are engaged and ready to be coached from a distance.
“We have been communicating electronically and the athletes are working out on their own. Would they be further along if we were able to have practices? Of course, but I am very proud of what these athletes are accomplishing on their own during this shut down.”
Sparks emphasized that players won’t return at mid-season form.
“Resuming the schedule would be doable, just losing out all of our earlier games would make the whole process slower in that the chemistry on the field during competition would take longer to build,” Sparks said.
“As far as injury, you always run the risk of that, but if a player does nothing over this time period, my opinion is they would run a greater risk of possible injuries.”
DiFilippo said if high school sports can be salvaged this year, all schools will start in an identical place.
“It will be difficult, however we have been in difficult spots before, and we will be again,” DiFilippo said. “This is unprecedented, and all teams are in the same spot.
“We will do the best we can.”
One unknown is whether the high schoolers will even get the chance to play any games after spring arrives.
Conn would like to be optimistic, but he fears that a cancelation of the season could be imminent.
“I think it is very possible,” Conn said. “We have just recently had our first local positive tests in Champaign and Coles counties. I think we will see a lot more.
“I hate it for the seniors involved in all the activities. I couldn’t imagine the teams that qualified for the boys’ basketball state tournament being told you don’t get to play. But if the IHSA was willing to make that move with very few positive tests, I think as we see more people test positive, they will feel like they have no choice but to cancel the spring sports.”
McFarland likes that there wasn’t an immediate rush to a decision.
“I think it’s very possible the IHSA cancels the spring sports,” he said, “but at least they gave a day when they will re-evaluate, unlike the Big Ten, which just canceled it.”
McFarland said if he were asked, he would prefer any sort of a season to none at all.
“I would like to see a shortened schedule, maybe 15 games over the end of April and start of May,” he said. “Probably just conference games and maybe a few nonconference that you have on the back end of the schedule.
“Maybe back the IHSA tournament up a couple of weeks to add some games. These kids deserve to play, but unfortunately it just may not work out that way. Then you just hope everyone is going to be OK and get through all of this.”
Sparks said that until – or unless – there is an announcement declaring the end of the spring sports season, he will remain optimistic.
“Thankful that the IHSA at this point has only postponed the start of our season, leaving hope that we may be able to play,” Sparks said. “I think that even given the ever growing information we receive on this virus that there were some hasty decisions made early by some groups to cancel seasons when maybe putting things on hold would have been easier to tolerate at least for now.
“And as the days go by, reality may set in and some tougher decisions might have to be made.”
Sparks is concerned about how all of the student-athletes are coping with – at the very least – what will be a reduced schedule, but one group in particular tugs at his heart.
“I feel really bad for all the athletes and coaches who are affected by this halt to their seasons,” Sparks said, “but especially for all the seniors who have worked so hard for their final season only to have something completely out of their control snatch it away.
“Those kids will all be better for this in the long run, but in some cases will always have to wonder what if we would have had our whole season or possibly even any of it.”
Conn emphasized that sports aren’t the only spring activity currently in limbo.
“All activities our students are involved in have been put on hold or cancelled,” he said. “We push our students to be the best at what they do. And now they may not get the chance to show their work.
“It is terrible that our seniors may not get their last season/play/debate/class/etc. in that they have worked hard for. I hope our students get an opportunity to compete/perform one more time before they graduate, but at the end of the day, we need to understand what’s important.”
