Saturday, November 21, 2020 - By Joshua Ross
The MIAA held their Board of Directors meeting yesterday and made final decisions on interscholastic high school winter sports. The Board voted on the recommendations from it's COVID-19 Task Force, who met earlier this week. These guidelines will follow the recommendations made from the EEA early this month.
The BOD voted to push back the start of the winter season from 12/10 to 12/14. The previous date was already pushed back from an original date of 11/30.
Unfortunately, 3 winter sports will be postponed - wrestling and winter cheerleading and dance were moved to spring season, while indoor track was pushed back to Fall II season.
The remaining winter sports - ice hockey, basketball, alpine & nordic skiing, swimming & diving, and gymnastics will all have modifications, just as the fall sports did.
Here are some highlights of the approved modifications:
Ice Hockey - Mandatory masks during game play, game day rosters reduced from 22 to 20, no use of locker rooms, 1 person in penalty box at a time, only 2 people allowed to battle for puck - third person in will result in immediate stoppage of play.
Basketball - Mandatory masks during game play, game day rosters maxed at 15, no halftime - break between each quarter increased to 2 1/2 minutes, no jump balls, no under the basket throw-ins, only 4 players on the line for free throws, strictly enforcing the 5 second rule, no intentional fouls - must notify referee before play if player intends to foul opponent.
Gymnastics - Masks are optional during routines, but must be worn all other times, dual meets only, no JV routines.
Swimming & Diving - Dual meets only, diving moved to beginning of meet, first 3 legs of relay teams must leave swim area when finished.
Alpine and Nordic Skiing - Masks must be worn at all times, warm ups must be held in pods with same group of athletes.
For a full list of modifications, policies and procedures for this upcoming winter season, please visit the MIAA COVID-19 Task Force homepage here.
As a reminder, any Hingham High School athlete wishing to play a winter sport must sign up by November 30th. The Parent & Athlete Winter Sports Meeting for Freshman is Dec. 2nd at 7pm and the meeting for Sophomores - Seniors is Dec. 7th at 7pm. Any questions regarding registration or meetings should reach out to Maryellen Holler - mholler@hinghamschools.org.