Boys and girls basketball programs will be allowed 31 games beginning Nov. 30. As a part of the mitigation plan, masks will be worn by all players, coaches, and officials during play.  

Each local school district will have the final decision if they allow their basketball teams to participate. 

“After diligent discussion, the Board has made the decision today to follow the recommendation of the IHSA SMAC as it relates to basketball,” an IHSA press release said. “The Board remains considerate of rising COVID-19 cases in Illinois and understand the importance of adhering to safety guidelines for the good of all citizens. However, the Board has not been presented any causal evidence that rising COVID-19 cases make basketball more dangerous to play by the IDPH or any other health organization nationally or internationally. On the contrary, the IHSA has been looking to bordering states who have sponsored both medium risk and high risk sports in the fall that have noted a low incident rate of COVID-19 spread.

“Instead, we will require all IHSA basketball teams to adhere to those SMAC mitigations, and allow local school officials to make decisions related to participation.”

The statement also said that the board took travel into other states to play sports during the winter season into consideration.

“Contact days for our teams this fall have been an incredible boon to our students’ well-being. We fear for the mental health of students who attempt to traverse a long winter with no athletic outlet available,’ the press release said. “So much about dealing with this virus has been learned in the past eight months, and this decision will grant the membership the opportunity to apply that knowledge during their basketball season.”

The IHSA Board also voted Wednesday to move the sport of wrestling from the winter season to the summer season, which will run from April 19 to June 26, 2021.

Low-risk sports including boys swimming and diving, cheerleading, dance, boys and girls bowling, and girls gymnastics will be conducted from Nov. 16, 2020, to Feb. 13, 2021. 

Gov. JB Pritzker said in a press conference Wednesday afternoon that school districts know what the Illinois state rules are.

“IHSA may have their own views, but school districts know what the rules are and I think that, it’s unfortunate that they would be probably taking on legal liability if they went against what the state has set as a mitigation standard.”

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Coaches always talk about how a season is a marathon, not a sprint. Nothing could be truer with high school cheerleading.

Like many squads, the Oakwood High School cheerleaders began the 2019-20 season in the heat of the summer. But unlike many other squads, they will end their season in the cold of February at the IHSA State Finals at Redbird Arena.

The Comets placed second at the Carterville Sectional Saturday, guaranteeing the squad a spot at the Cheer State Preliminaries on Friday. They will perform at 12:55 in the Small Team division.

After football season ended with Oakwood High School’s first IHSA football playoff win in 31 years, the Comets turned to their basketball routine, but also prepared for their competition season.

Head coach Kacie Jones said that the goals the team set at the beginning of the season are what has helped them succeed in the marathon.

“We set small goals at the start of each practice and write them on a whiteboard to help stay focused during practice,” she said. “We also write our accomplishments on our mats so that we can see how far we have come throughout the season.”

The Comets took the court on Dec. 8 at the Illinois Cheerleading Coaches Association (ICCA) Invitational on Dec. 8. While their first performance wasn’t what they’d hoped it would be, the Comets qualified for the ICCA Championship where they placed 15th on Jan. 20.

The following weekend, the Comets performed at the North Pole Invite where they placed first. They also placed first in the Vermilion County Tournament in January.

Jones said the season definitely had highs and lows.

“We’ve been a bit frustrated all season because we have performed better at practices than competitions, and we have had mistakes in the last few skill sections of our routines at competition,” she said.

“But we worked together to put our best routine of the season out for sectionals.

“I always tell our athletes that the season is a marathon, not a sprint, but sectionals week is that final mile where it is time to really kick it into high gear and give it your all.”

Leading up to sectionals, the Comets really focused on hitting a routine that was clean, focusing on their strengths, including strong stunts and pyramid.

“On Saturday, we were finally able to put together a complete routine, and it was an amazing feeling when we finished!” Jones said.

“I was proud of my athletes, and excited for both the new and returning members to have the opportunity to attend state. It is a relief to know that all of your hard work from the season has paid off.”

During the sprint to the state finish line, the Comets know they must remain focused.

On Monday, they worked on adding more difficulty to their routine. As the week progresses, they will focus on execution and repetition.

“Our goal is to finish in the Top 10 and move on to the finals on Saturday,” Jones said.

No matter what, Jones is pleased with the character and determination of her 2019-20 squad.

“There have been a lot of twists and turns to this season, but they have never given up on themselves or one another,” she said. “They have really come together as a team over the past few weeks and set high expectations for themselves.”

The 2020 Oakwood Cheer Squad Members Includes: Audrey Acord, Anniston Brant, Lydia Dazey, McKenzie Ellerkamp, Xoey Ensign, Cassie Fugate, Allie Morris, Mia Nash, Allie Plotner, Shelby Smiley, Lyrik Talbert

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