Football, volleyball & swim will compete in ’21
Published September 18, 2020
By JENNIFER GENTILE
MELROSE—Some of Melrose High’s most popular sports teams won’t see varsity play until 2021 after the Middlesex League voted to pass a modified version of fall high school sports on September 4 that didn’t include a handful of fall sports. Being postponed to a Fall-2 “wedge season” from Feb-April are football, cheer, girls’ swim, volleyball and Unified Basketball. It’s good news, however, for cross country, golf, field hockey and soccer, who will see play this fall starting in late September. That’s if another shoe doesn’t drop. And in 2020, it’s been raining Jimmy Choos.
The move comes after the Dept. of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) and the National Federation of High School Associations (NFHSA) spent the summer paving the way for fall sports, including swim and volleyball, by giving the green light in August. Recently, football was deemed the only high-risk fall sport by the NFHSA and was restricted from play this fall by the MIAA, though the sport is currently underway in New Hampshire high schools. Earlier this summer, the MIAA ruled that ‘Fall 1’ will operate from September 18 to November 20 for low and moderate risk sports while creating ‘Fall 2’ wedge season from February 22 through April 25. Communities who are considered high risk (red) by the Governor Baker’s color-coded COVID-19 case map are forced to move all their fall sports to this ‘wedge’ season. Melrose, being green, was welcomed to play this fall, but the Middlesex League chose to send just 4 of its sports to the field. The Melrose School Committee signed off on this sport plan last week on September 8.
The last day any varsity game took place in Massachusetts was March 11.
No one is under the impression that sports will look normal when they commence. Certainly, sports like soccer will seem overly-restrictive and foreign, but at this point in the pandemic, it’s less about winning titles and more about getting kids a chance to play safely and to represent their school, particularly upperclassmen edging towards graduation. That’s a concept that administrators, coaches and players are grasping. They all remember last spring.
For Super Bowl champ Tim Morris, head coach of Melrose High football, the important part is getting a season in. “We had our expectations so low. Now, the kids just want a season,” says Morris. “It’s frustrating because right over the border in New Hampshire they’re playing football this month. The kids know this and it’s not easy for them. And a recent study showed that among 1,000 football games held already across the country so far there hasn’t been any connection to a large outbreak.”
Decisions are arbitrary and inconsistent across the state—a tough pill to swallow for players, coaches and fans alike. “It’s easy to imagine what-ifs,” says Morris. “But, we’re trying to be hopeful. We’ve taken the time as a team, as a community, to improve things. February football can happen. Obviously, any major weather event can put a wrinkle in things, but these are tough kids who acclimate to the weather and hard conditions. It’s won’t be the first time we’ve had to plow snow off the field.”
Great teams are built in the offseason. But in Melrose, restrictions have made that difficult. First, the Middlesex League voted against the MIAA’s allowance of offseason coaching by high school coaches. Secondly, the MHS weight room has been restricted to the team all summer. “The hardest part is losing the conditioning,” says Morris. “We’ve lost five months of weight room training. That’s a key component in building this team. It helps create team chemistry and most importantly, helps with injury prevention. That’s something we worry about down the line. The kids need to get back into the weight room.” The facility, funded by the Friends of Melrose Football, has often been credited in helping Melrose transform from a good team to marquee powerhouse this decade. No doubt, kids are keeping fit privately, but the sooner they can get into their familiar training ground, the better.
Says Morris, “We are returning champions, we have seniors and upperclassmen who were a big part of our Super Bowl win and are ready to return as captains and leaders, like our captains Matt Hickey, Andrew-Norton Jefferson and Brendan Fennell. These are program guys and this is important for them. We’re concerned for them.”
Volleyball team also spiked to next spring
Another team whose season has been postponed is the Melrose High volleyball team, a Middlesex League dynasty who earned another league title last year.
Modifications for the sport issued by the DESE were challenging but doable. For volleyball, they included hitters and blockers standing 3 feet from the net, mask-wearing, no locker room access, no handshakes and a limit on spectators, among others. But the Middlesex League didn’t like the idea of any indoor play.
For Melrose head coach Scott Celli, it’s a pretty big adjustment. “For twenty-eight straight years, we’ve been gearing up each fall. This is certainly unprecedented. We’re focused on pulling this off in Fall-2 and we want this for our seniors especially.”
He points out that the wait might have a “saving grace,” so to speak. “I’m hoping that by the time Feb/March comes, the modifications won’t be necessary and the girls can play the game the way it’s meant to be played.”
When they do hit the court, expect a schedule that looks a little like it would have this fall: 10 matches, all within Middlesex Small competition with a league champion declared as the finale to the season. While it won’t look anything like last season, when Melrose swept the competition to a (RECORD) season, it certainly means much to their captains, senior Emily Hudson, junior Autumn Whelan and sophomore Chloe Gentile. The team’s upperclassmen (names) would like a concrete finish to their high school careers, and no doubt these players will be expecting a promise kept if Melrose remains in the green. They’re not taking this Fall2 wedge season opportunity lightly. They will train on the offseason and be expecting to play, so league officials need to work now to help make that happen.
As for forecasting an imagined sports season in February? “Some coaches are convinced we’ll be in a better place, some feel skeptical,” says Celli. “Me, I think by then we will understand the virus a little more, and maybe even a vaccine will be ready.”
He points out that a good indicator for sports in later seasons could be how teams like soccer and field hockey fare this season, right now. “Volleyball is not a high-risk sport, it’s not a contact sport. If sports like soccer can pull off a safe and competitive season this fall, I think it bodes well for a lot of sports. It could pave the way for more seasons of competition in Melrose.”
Ever the optimist, he concludes: “There are better days ahead.”
Swim team treading water until early spring
Citing a lack of open facilities, the Middlesex League also decided to move girls swim to Fall 2. Melrose High coach Bryan Meegan wasn’t necessarily surprised by the news but disappointed nonetheless.
“I was initially disappointed but I’m optimistic that it’s the right move. Most teams in the league were having trouble locking down pool time because of all the restrictions in place, so hopefully some of those will be lifted in time for the Winter and Fall2 seasons. I tried to keep my expectations in check.”
He notes that guidelines would have made the season a challenge. “Based on the guidelines from the MIAA, I knew that this season was going to look very, very different. Practices would have to be adjusted to space out swimmers because you can’t exactly wear a mask while swimming. During meets we wouldn’t be able to shout and cheer on the swimmers. So, as much as the girls and their families want a return to normal, this season was going to be far from it.”
When they return to the pool, leading the team in Fall 2 will be captains Lucy Tyson and Courtney Casey. There should be no reason to doubt that these two, and the whole squad, will get into the water. Says Meegan, “I’m anticipating that if most schools in the league don’t move to a remote model during the winter, we’ll still have our season as planned. I’m hoping that when the season does happen, it’ll be an opportunity for us to build up the team and recruit some new members.”
In the meantime, he wants his team members to remain active. “I’m encouraging the girls to participate in a different fall sport. Many of them have been on the team their whole time in high school, so they’ve missed the chance to play other fall sports like soccer or cross country. The MIAA isn’t limiting students to three seasons, so I hope that lots of student athletes take advantage of all four seasons.”
