Suffolk Plans To Resume Sports In Break With Nassau

SUFFOLK COUNTY, NY — Suffolk County officials plan to resume sports following Gov. Andrew Cuomo's announcement Monday that low-risk youth sports teams in New York will be allowed to practice and play games beginning next month.

Sports such as tennis, soccer, cross-country, field hockey and swimming can resume practicing and playing games in all regions beginning Sept. 21, Cuomo said. School sports must abide by guidance set forth by the state Department of Health, and no travel practice or play will be allowed outside the school's region until at least Oct. 19.

Upon receiving the news, the New York State Public High School Athletic Association held two meetings Wednesday to begin preparing for the 2020 fall interscholastic athletics seasons.

The eleven section executive directors, officers and association staff met Wednesday morning. The organization's COVID-19 task force met Wednesday afternoon for the fourth time since the pandemic began affecting high school athletics.

See also: Nassau Cancels School Sports For 2020

According to Newsday, during the meetings, Section XI officials who govern Suffolk high school athletics voted unanimously to allow sports to resume and begun to analyze guidance from state officials.

The athletic association plans to hold another meeting before the end of the week to continue to review guidance from officials and help schools implement the interscholastic athletic programs amid the pandemic.

"We are encouraged and appreciative of Governor Cuomo authorizing the start of the fall sports seasons for low and moderate risk sports and affording high risk sports the opportunity to begin practicing on September 21st," said Dr. Robert Zayas, the association's executive director. "As the governing body for interscholastic sports in NYS, our primary role will be to work with schools, coaches and parents to ensure recommended COVID-19 guidelines are practiced vigilantly for the safety and wellness of all student-athletes. Over 200,000 students participate in the fall high school sports seasons and yesterday’s announcement was certainly a positive step for all those athletes."

The association plans to make decisions on the number of required practices student-athletes will need before participating in a scrimmage or contest, the maximum number of contests and games that will be allow during the season, and guidelines for schools to use as interscholastic athletics return to schools and communities throughout the state.

"The leadership of NYSPHSAA and eleven sections realize there are challenges to overcome and questions to be addressed in an effort to provide a beneficial participation experience for student-athletes this fall," said Paul Harrica, NYSPHSAA president and chair of the COVID-19 task force. "Our primary goal is to get students back into an academic setting and then work on athletic participation opportunities."