Update: July 20
All interscholastic sports will be delayed until at least December, and athletics will be divvied into two seasons instead of the usual three, the CIF announced today. It will be up to each individual section on when to begin its seasons. In another unprecedented move, the CIF will also allow students to participate in club athletics while also competing for their school. Additionally, all sports that previously had more than 72 days in the regular season will be limited to 72, while schools below that threshold will continue with the original number. The number of sections, divisions, championships and playoff entries remains unchanged.
In the updated schedule released today, sports will have playoffs in April and March for the “fall” season and in May and June for the “spring” season. Former winter season sports have been moved to either of these two new designations. Some changes in the Southern Section include both boys and girls water polo, as well as both boys and girls volleyball, will take place in the fall season, while both basketball seasons, both golf seasons, both soccer seasons and both tennis seasons will be played in the later spring season.
For more information on specific start dates and playoff dates for Southern Section athletics, check the CIF-SS release here.
Update: June 26
In an email sent June 23, Head of Athletics Terry Barnum announced the department’s plans for the upcoming offseason. All offseason programs will be optional and will start on July 6 for all rising 9th through 12th graders. According to Barnum, the school plans to use a “phase” approach to begin.
“In the first phase, athletes will be grouped in small ‘pods’, with activity focusing on general fitness, while observing the recommended six-feet of social distance,” Barnum said in the email. “Progression to the next phase of training, with increased activity and contact, will be dependent on guidance from public health authorities, the successful completion of our own first phase of return to campus, and the overall course that the coronavirus takes as the summer moves along. While we feel confident that we will be able to begin athletic activities on July 6, a number of different factors could create delays.”
Barnum also provided a list of rules athletes must follow in order to participate, such as wearing masks whenever they aren’t participating in athletics and providing a completed physical exam. In addition, guests will not be allowed at practices.
Update: April 6
All Harvard-Westlake spring athletics are officially canceled, Head of Athletics Terrence Barnum announced in an email Monday. The announcement follows a similar statement from the CIF on Friday. The email details how all students signed up for athletics, including HWTV and team management, will receive a trimester of P.E. credit for the spring season. It also specifies that a new, CIF mandated “dead period”, where athletes cannot have any contact with coaches or access any Harvard-Westlake weight rooms, will take place from May 30 to June 12.
Update: April 3
In a statement put out Friday, CIF Executive Director Ron Nocetti announced the cancellation of the spring sporting season. This decision comes after deliberation with the 10 sections and includes all seasons, regional events and state championships. The organization also plans to institute measures to prepare for the start of next year’s fall season.
“We’re going to work with the sections to get out front for the fall,” Nocetti said. “All of us hope the contingencies we come up with won’t be needed, but we’ll have plans in place. There’s still so much unknown and still fluid. The plans we discuss with sections will be if we start on time or if we start and then have to pause.”
Update: March 20
In another email sent today, Head of Athletics Terrence Barnum announced that all athletic events will remain suspended through, and after, spring break. He also announced that the 10 CIF sections in the state have a plan to meet on April 3, where they plan to discuss how schools will proceed with spring season championships. Additionally, the sports performance team will update social media accounts with various activities students can do to stay active during the break.
Update: March 13
Head of Athletics Terrence Barnum sent an email to the school today, detailing the actions the school and California sports community have taken in regards to athletics. All middle school sports will not resume until April 13 at the earliest, as the Junior High Delphic League, the middle school’s league, is shut down until March 31. At the upper school level, the Mission League also suspended its athletic activities until March 31, and the same goes for all non-league event.
Additionally, all offseason training, weight room and training room use on campus will not continue until in-person classes resume. That rule also applies to any club sport activities on Harvard-Wesltake campuses. Barnum also included a document describing tips students can take to cope with any stress that may arise from these circumstances, including “staying connected” and “focusing on the controllables.”
Update: March 11
In accordance with school’s cancellation, the spring sports season has halted until further notice, according to President Rick Commons. In the email sent to students, parents and faculty, Commons said there was a chance sports could resume, but, as of now, competition and practice will stop.
Update: March 10
Baseball tournament cancelled due to COVID-19
In an email, President Rick Commons announced the baseball team would not attend its tournament in North Carolina, the National High School Invitational tournament. The NHSI tournament is a four day tournament taking place April 1-4.
