Hockey, Basketball, Gymnastics On For Winter At Braintree High

BRAINTREE, MA — The winter sport season is still on at Braintree High School, but the coronavirus pandemic has significantly changed which sports will be a part of it.

Athletic Director Michael Denise told the school committee Monday boys and girls basketball, hockey and gymnastics will all take place in their normal winter season, while other sports that involve more close contact like wrestling, cheerleading won't start until spring. The dance team also delayed its season until spring, while indoor track is expected to start during the Fall II season in Februrary, when sports like football that couldn't happen in the fall are scheduled to begin.

Denise said he's optimistic sports can continue safely, and the fall sports that already competed were successful from a safety level, especially when compared to other schools.

"We did have a very successful fall season," Denise said. "I'm glad to let you know we found there were no transmissions through our student athletics. We were very pleased and proud of that."

Denise estimated just 10-15 percent of student athletes had to quarantine at any point during fall. He said the biggest problem the school had was with outbreaks at other schools affecting gameplay.

But since winter sports are indoors, there's obviously going to be some differences from the fall season, as the risk for contracting the coronavirus increases in indoor spaces. Last week, the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association Board of Directors approved strict rules for schools that compete in the winter.

As was the case the with soccer and field hockey in the fall, basketball and hockey both have several rules modifications.

Hockey players must wear masks at all times and must not congregate on the bench during games. Instead, they must spread out 6 feet apart in stands and surrounding areas. Players must also not use locker rooms for meetings and showers – only to use the bathroom facilities.

Basketball players must also wear masks during the game with designated areas for mask breaks during the game. There will be no halftime with 150 seconds between each quarter. The game ball will be changed at the end of each quarter. Teams must socially distance during timeouts with longer timeouts to account for sanitizing.

With gymnastics, Denise said the competitions will be done remotely.

"So if Braintree is competing against Walpole, they both would compete in their home facilities with officials present, and scores would be compared," Denise said.

Denise said the same thing was done with swim meets during fall, and they successfully completed nine meets.

See the full changes for winter sports in Massachusetts here.

Indoor Track

The MIAA moved indoor track to in between winter and spring sports, and Denise sees this as a benefit for both the boys and girls teams.

Both teams compete at the Reggie Lewis Center in Roxbury, and with that not being open, this could provide an opportunity for the teams to have interscholastic competition. Denise said the season transitioning right into track-and-field is also a bonus for continuity.

"That's a win-win for our track and field athletes," Denise said.

Wrestling

Wrestling was moved to spring, and Denise said this gives the team an opportunity to compete against other schools depending on the state of the coronavirus pandemic.

Denise wants to have the wrestling mats moved outside to create more open space for socialing distancing. He said it's also possible a vaccine may be available by then.

"We're still trying to run a full slate of athletics, but it may not look as normal, and they may not happen in the seasons you expect them to be happening in," Denise said.

Cheerleading and Dance

Both sports competitive seasons are expected to start in spring. This will focus on competition, rather than cheering on other teams. There won't be any cheerleaders at basketball games this winter.

But this doesn't mean cheerleading won't happen at any sporting events this school year, Denise said. He said it's possible there may be cheerleaders at football games in the transition season, and the athletic department is also exploring the possibility of having cheerleaders at lacrosse games.

School committee member Kelly Cobb-Lemire was a fan of the idea, and said she used to cheer during hockey games, a sport that typically doesn't have cheerleaders.

"I think that's a great idea to think outside the box," she said.