Among all the chaos that has come with the outbreak of COVID-19, student-athletes whose sports are in the spring are devastated that they won’t have a season due to the close contact and high risk of contracting COVID-19.
As of May 13, Governor Tim Walz announced that some small non-essential businesses can open back up only if they implement some sort of system to regulate the number of people and their contact with each other in the space. As more and more places are opening, many are hopeful this means they will be able to get on the field, court or track with teammates at some point this summer.
Some sports, such as Girls’ Lacrosse, are desperate to get out and play at some point this year, so they plan on having an hour and a half practices starting in July for two to three weeks. Because spring sports weren’t able to have tryouts this year due to the pandemic, these practices will be program-wide and for all grade levels. Captain Payton Crosby ‘21 says “I’m excited to get back on the field this summer, play some lacrosse and hopefully be able to see my teammates.”
However, no amount of summer practices are going to make up for the lack of a season this year for these spring sport athletes. Many students who are looking to commit to a college for a spring sport are largely disappointed that their prime recruiting season is no more.
Josh Noteboom ‘21 says “Junior year is the time when college coaches are watching you the closest and are trying to make decisions for their rosters. I got the chance to play in front of a few coaches last summer but they haven’t seen me play since. I would say most athletes including myself were really hoping to prove themselves this spring season and during summer showcases.”
Because there was no spring season, athletes are forced to only show the coaches highlight reels of them from past seasons and summer teams, which is less than ideal for both the athletes and the coaches. Noteboom says that “This makes it really hard given that most athletes have improved and grown from last season.”
Noteboom sums it up best when he says, “I think this is a major set back, but I think it also gives most athletes more drive to do the best they can in this situation.”
