Keystone Central Looks at Attendance Policy for Fall Athletic Events
BALD EAGLE TOWNSHIP – Scholastic sports dominated much of the Keystone Central School Board work session Thursday evening. The board heard a plan for attendance guidelines at fall athletic events and a call for a girls’ wrestling team at Central Mountain High School.
Both reports were given by Superintendent Jacquelyn Martin. She first presented a proposed Athletics Health and Safety Plan for the district to be in accord with crowd size dictates from the state. She indicated the plan relative to attendance at home events is evolving and noted that the leagues in which Central Mountain and Bucktail High Schools participate are addressing the same issues this week.
She unveiled a scaled plan which would provide up to four free tickets to student athletes, band members and cheerleaders for use by family members. As the state will allow only 250 people in attendance at outdoor events and only 25 indoors, her proposal has limits. Because only 25 people may be in a gym, no spectators will be allowed at Central Mountain senior and junior high volleyball events. And because Central Mountain football and its visiting teams will have so many members, only two tickets will be available for senior team members and one for underclassmen, depending upon the number of participants from the visiting team. More tickets, four, would be available for Bucktail football team members due to smaller team sizes.
Spectators would be allowed at tennis matches at the two schools, at Central Mountain cross country meets and at Central Mountain golf matches, as long as the rules from the Clinton Country Club, where home matches are played, are followed. Spectators would also be permitted at junior high softball games, as long as they wear masks and social distance from anyone not in the same household. The mask-wearing and social distancing will be required at all athletic events within the district. Martin indicated the new plan will go into effect as soon as this Friday. (The complete Athletics Health and Safety Plan may be found on the school district’s website as part of the Thursday work session agenda).
School board members present Thursday at the virtual work session favorably received Martin’s recommendation for a girls’ wrestling team at Central Mountain High School. A vote on the proposal will be held at the Thursday, Sept. 10 voting session. If approved, Central Mountain would be among the first Pennsylvania high schools to field a girls’ wrestling team.
District officials first advanced the proposal at last month’s meeting of the board’s curricular and extra-curricular committee. Thursday evening Martin gave her unqualified support to the proposal, as did Central Mountain head wrestling coach Biff Walizer. He had with him two girls who were members of the boys’ team last season; Olivia Miller and Madison Packer both spoke favorably of the opportunity to compete in a program for girls.
If approved, Central Mountain would join a handful of such programs in the state, including Easton, North Allegheny and Lancaster McCaskey High Schools. As explained by Martin, there would be no additional cost to the district as the present boys program already has the needed uniforms and equipment. The Central Mountain Wrestling Boosters Club would fully fund the girls program until if and when the PIAA would sanction the sport.
Superintendent Martin gave high marks to principals across Keystone Central for a successful “soft” opening of classes this week, given all the new parameters brought on by dealing with COVID-19 and other changes within the district.
