Eagle Athletics Are Back!
by John Hughes, Athletic Director
It was music to the ears for all the Eagle student-athletes (especially the seniors) to hear the WIAA, Department of Health, Metro League, and Seattle Public Schools February 1, 2021 announcement that sports are back! It has been over a year since the Eagles last took the field for any competitions due to the pandemic.
The ability for sports to return is conditioned upon compliance with all guidance and protocol measures outlined by the various agencies. First practices are set to begin on February 22, 2021. Most sports competitions may continue as long as the Puget Sound Region, composed of King, Pierce, and Snohomish counties stays in Phase 2.
There will be two seasons this year:
“Season 1” begins February 22, 2021, and includes the following sports: football, cross country, golf, girls bowling, girls soccer, slowpitch softball, girls swim, and volleyball.
“Season 2” begins on April 19, 2021, and includes baseball, boys soccer, boys swimming, basketball, fastpitch softball, track, wrestling, and tennis.
Indoor “high-risk” sports such as wrestling and basketball are not yet authorized to participate in competitions. We are hopeful the Covid numbers will improve to allow them to compete.
Safety will be the number one focus.
Everyone in the Eagle athletics department has had extra time to be trained on Covid-19 return-to-play guidelines.
- Every practice and game will have a Site Supervisor in charge to ensure compliance with all guidelines and protocols.
- Coaches have been trained to take Covid screening information, temperature checks, etc.
- All coaches and student-athletes will wear masks during all events, including practices and competitions.
- No fans will be allowed at any Metro League competitions this year.
The Eagle athletic department is taking the safety of our coaches, athletes, and community very seriously. The picture shown here is of our volleyball team demonstrating how safely we plan to conduct all events.
There is a new website rolling out where you can see all sports schedules and score results: www.metroleague-cleveland.org. We encourage all alumni to take a look.
We are excited to offer our students the benefits that participating in high school sports provides. With remote learning still taking place, sports will improve physical fitness, social and emotional development, personal and team goal attainment, leadership development, teamwork, time management skills, and improved academics.
While there will be no state championships this year, there will be Metro League playoffs in a variety of formats allowing our students to set their goals high!
It has been a challenging school year for everyone, but especially for our youth. We hope these next few months give our students some joy and happiness.
GO EAGLES !!!
