Preps’ virus closure remains as other states prepare to open
Last week, New Jersey became the last state to officially cancel high school spring sports. It did so a few days before the Indiana High School Athletic Association became the first in the country to announce that schoolsponsored activities can resume, tentatively, July 1.
California Interscholastic Federation Executive Director Ron Nocetti, a San Francisco native and Sacred Heart Cathedral graduate, is pleased for Indiana but said California isn’t nearly ready to make such a proclamation amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The questions about the status of fall sports — Will there be a football season? Will it start late or move to the winter or spring? When would practice begin? Will fans be allowed? — are endless.
Under its current bylaws, the Central Coast Section’s first scheduled day of 2020 football practice is Aug. 7; the North Coast Section follows on Aug. 10. The first games are scheduled for Aug. 28.
But without formal weight training since early March, will teams be allowed more practice or preparation time?
Nocetti understands the inquiries, speculation and anxiousness. But it’s simply too early to offer answers.
“We’re taking cues from the governor’s office, the California Department of Education and state and local public health departments,” he said. “Believe me when I say the CIF and all 10 of our sections are working on contingency plans considering every possibility.
“Once we have a date when we can go, we’ll roll out the plan of action. My assumption that every other state association is doing the same thing and all the states are different.”
Awards season
Monday’s fourth annual San Francisco High School Awards Banquet at the SF Italian Athletic Club was canceled because of the COVID19 lockdown. The awards sent out — but not presented — included the Athletes of the Year: Sacred Heart Cathedral girls volleyball player Skylar Canady and Charlie Kennedy, who plays three sports for University.
The guests of honor were retiring SHC athletic director Jo Ann Momono, Harold Abend (journalist) and the boys basketball teams from Lincoln and Riordan, which had their seasons cut short because of the pandemic.
Among the schools (and the award received):
Sacred Heart Cathedral: Dylan Rogers (Stephen Negoesco, boys soccer), Brian Harrigan (Dante Benedetti, coaching), Alden Standley (Hank Luisetti female scholarathlete of year) and Uday Narottam (Luisetti male scholarathlete of the year) and Sabina House (crosscountry).
St. Ignatius: Teddye Buchanan (Vince Tringali, football), Colin Clifford ( Joe DiMaggio, baseball), John Regalia (Steve Mariucci, coach of the year), Danny Ryan (football, lacrosse), Rachel Harvey (girls basketball) and Duke Reeder (football, lacrosse).
Riordan: Bryce Monroe (Kevin Restani, boys basketball), Je’Lani Clark (boys basketball) and Raymond Russell (football, wrestling).
LickWilmerding: Jeff Gardiner (Mariucci,coaching) and Annabel Schneiberg (girls basketball).
Lowell: Hannah McCord (Negoesco, girls soccer) and Mariko Tanaka (girls volleyball scholar).
Others honored included: Balboa’s Ed Nevius ( Benedetti, coaching), Lincoln’s Luis Contreras (football), Washington’s Clarissa Li (Restani, girls basketball) and Urban’s Robert Ciulla (baseball).
CIF: SkylineOakland crosscountry and track distance runner Eleanor Wikstrom and Tulare’s Barrett Nunley won CIF ScholarAthletes of the Year awards. Wikstrom, who lettered all four years in both sports, is a National Merit semifinalist, a National AP Scholar and 4.0 student. She’s headed to Harvard.
“Eleanor is a very unique individual,” said Skyline track and crosscountry coach Sean Kohles. “She inspires and challenges others to be better. She is empathetic, uplifting, fair, stern and able to see the big picture.”
Other top scholarathlete awards from each section included: CCS’s Standley (SHC), NCS’s Emma Casey (Las LomasWalnut Creek) and Zavier Annis (St. JosephNotre DameAlameda), San Francisco Section’s Elena Rodriguez (Mission) and Adam Chirackal (Wallenberg) and Oakland Section’s Carla FrancoFelix and David Robles, both of Coliseum College Prep.