Sports
Coronavirus: RI Outlines Possible Spring School Sports Season
The Rhode Island Interscholastic League approved a scenario where games could start May 11, if school is allowed back in session.
NORTH KINGSTOWN, RI — With the weeks of a potential final spring season slipping away for high school seniors amid the coronavirus health crisis, the Rhode Island Interscholastic League provided a picture of what a short run of games might look like should high school teams across the state be allowed to return to the fields. The format approved Monday — which is predicated on Gov. Gina Raimondo allowing schools to reopen on May 4 — would have spring practices begin that day ahead of a seven-week season, including a potential playoffs.
(EDITOR'S NOTE: On Tuesday afternoon, Gov. Raimondo extended the ban on gatherings of more than five people through at least May 8).
"The timeline will be reevaluated and modified accordingly based on any new announcements or changes made by Governor Gina Raimondo and the R. I. Health Department," RIIL officials qualified as it announced the revised schedule.
Find out what's happening in North Kingstownwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
The Principals' Committee on Athletics unanimously approved on Monday allowing teams to start practicing if school resumes on May 4 and begin contests as soon as May 11. Teams would then play a season — which may or may not include a state tournament — that would be required to be wrapped up by June 27.
The outline is very similar to the one the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association adopted last week in an effort to provide some hope for graduating seniors looking to don the uniform for their respective school one last time.
Find out what's happening in North Kingstownwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
The RI proposal also mirrors the Massachusetts proposal in that it shortens the amount of practices needed to be held between the start of workouts and the first day of games, puts academic eligibility at the discretion of each school and waives some regulations regarding transfer students due to the unique nature of this spring.
The RIIL also opted to delay statewide realignment for the state tournaments. The alignments that have been in place since 2018 will now be extended through the 2020-21 school year.
High school athletics in RI have joined most of the rest of society on hiatus since coming to an abrupt end last month. The RIIL tried to pushed forward with the winter season through the middle of the month — even offering to play the championship games in near-empty arenas with no fans — before the final games were canceled due to the escalating coronavirus crisis.
"The RIIL made every effort to keep the tournaments going and to give the student-athletes an opportunity to finish out their winter seasons," RIIL Executive Director Thomas Mezzonatte said on March 13. "However, the league in conjunction with the Principals' Committee on Athletics has determined that is not possible given the extenuating circumstances created by the COVID-19 health crisis."
Don't miss updates about precautions in your area as they are announced. Sign up for Patch news alerts and newsletters.
(If you have a story of a local business or organization that is looking to lend a hand to those in need during the coronavirus pandemic, or lift spirits amid social distancing and isolation, Patch wants to let people in your community know about it. Contact Scott Souza at Scott.Souza@patch.com to help us spread the positives during this uncertain time.)
Coronavirus in Rhode Island: Latest headlines
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
