AIA Executive Board Approves Calendar For Return To Fall Sports

By on August 7, 2020 0 735Views

Amid the pandemic, a question for many parents has been if Fall high school sports will resume. As of now, it looks like the answer is yes.

At a special meeting on August 5th, the Arizona Interscholastic Association’s Executive Board, approved the fall 2020 interscholastic athletics calendar.

AIA relayed that it is important to note the resumption of all athletics and activities are subject to change based upon changes to national, state or local guidelines, or government directives.

“The health and safety of our student participants, coaches, officials and essential personnel, including volunteers, is the primary concern for the return of interscholastic athletics and activities,” said AIA Executive Director David Hines. “We are very grateful to those who share our commitment of a return to these highly beneficial educational activities and athletics.”

The Executive Board has voted for a phase-in, beginning of fall sports. The start dates of each sport were identified based on information received from member schools regarding student and personnel safety, and what is most easily administered by athletic directors and coaches.

Executive Board members, who are representatives of member schools, were concerned that the ability to create a uniform interscholastic environment would be challenging as each school district is autonomous in their decisions as to when to return to in-person instruction. Ultimately, the proposed schedule was approved. The mental health and well-being of the students were key in this approved proposal.

“We owe it to our members to provide a direction,” stated Executive Board President and Safford Athletic Director Toni Corona. “It may be challenging to get everything going for all the schools at one time but with good communication, we can provide the best possible experience for our students in this unprecedented time. This Board and the AIA staff will continue to provide information and guidelines as we proceed.”

All fall sports will continue to operate under out-of-season/summer rules as per AIA Bylaws and Policies until the first permissible day of practice for each sport.

Fall sports now have an abridged regular season to accommodate for the amount of time available before winter sports begin. All fall sports will have an opportunity for a championship tournament. Due to the late start of the fall season, the Executive Board approved the winter season to begin one week later than normal.

This new schedule does allow for schools and districts who are not able to start on the earliest possible date to join competition when feasible and still be eligible for the postseason, provided those school teams meet conference minimums.

“We would like to thank our member schools and our school communities for their patience as we worked through the challenges to develop this plan,” Hines said.

Once conference committees have completed the amended scheduling process, all schedules will appear live on AIAonline.org and AZPreps365.com.

For the schools that have already canceled their fall seasons, Hines and the Executive Board will continue to work with those schools to offer opportunities for students to participate and provide as complete an experience as possible in these unusual circumstances.

Spiritline tryouts may begin as early as August 17th based on a school’s particular needs. However, stunting may not begin until September 7th.

As previously shared with member schools, Esports registration is currently ongoing with a preseason start date of Sept. 15.

Golf
First practice – Aug. 17
First competition – Aug. 24
Championships – Oct. 26-29 (Div. I), Nov. 2-5 (Div. II)

Spiritline
Tryouts may begin as early as August 17th
Stunting may not begin until September 7th

Cross Country
First Practice – Aug. 24
First Competition – Sept. 9
Championships – Nov. 12-13

Swimming & Diving
First Practice – Aug. 24
First Competition – Sept. 14
Championships – Nov. 5-7

Badminton
First Practice – Aug. 31
First Competition – Sept. 14
Championships – Nov. 7 (Individuals), Nov. 9-12 (Teams)

Fall Soccer
First Practice – Aug. 31
First Competition – Sept. 16
Championships – Nov. 4-7

Volleyball
First Practice – Aug. 31
First Competition – Sept. 21
Championships – Nov. 12-21

Football
First Practice – Sept. 7
First Competition – Sept. 30-Oct. 3
Championships – Dec. 11/12 (4A-6A & Open)

The 1A-3A conferences are currently discussing possibilities for length of their regular seasons and when to hold state championships.