As most of us know, Governor Cuomo and local health officials gave the green light to begin high risk winter sports in our county. The high risk sports that received clearance to begin included boys and girls ice hockey and boys and girls basketball.  Obviously, there wasn’t a clear answer if the Sweet Home School District would reopen these sports, since there were many ups and downs to both sides. A board meeting was held the morning of Saturday, January 30th in order to discuss and vote on the beginning of high risk sports.

Before the board meeting, many student athletes and parents stood outside the school to project their views on the situation.  There were many signs and chants, and they hoped board members would see how much the season would mean to them.  

At the board meeting, there were twenty five speakers. These consisted of students, athletes, parents and coaches. The speakers had displayed their ideas and opinions on the possible upcoming seasons.  A big idea represented throughout the meeting was how badly the students needed sports. This was for several reasons. Mental health is very important and some people rely on sports to keep them motivated. Many students will keep their grades up in order to participate in sports. Also, all student athletes are very disciplined and they all agreed to wear masks and be very safe and respectful during practices and games.  

On the other hand, many believed it wasn’t right to begin sports due to the safety of students and their families. In the end, the board members voted and it resulted in a five to two vote. The board overall decided they would begin basketball and hockey for the Sweet Home School District! 

Players will be taking many precautions.  They are wearing masks at all times while playing within six feet of one another, and they are also doing random testing of 10% of the athletes every week.  

The players and coaches are very excited to begin their seasons, and are willing to take all of these precautions to play.

To watch the full board meeting regarding high risk winter sports, click here. The section regarding sports begins at the 1:49:00 mark.

Lauren Hubert

Lauren is a senior this year at Sweet Home High School and enjoys writing about many different genres! Outside of the school she enjoys hanging with friends and playing volleyball. This is her third year of the Panther Eye and she’s very excited to be apart of the team!

Olivia Weissenburg

Olivia is in her senior year at Sweet Home High School. Her writing will focus primarily around sports in the Sweet Home community.