Updated Jesuit Sports Calendar 20-21
Screenshot taken of the OSAA website by Kavish Siddhartha
The revised 2020-2021 OSAA sports activities calendar
The OSAA recently announced on December 7th that they have adopted a new calendar for the fall, winter, and spring sports seasons amidst COVID-19 concerns. The total duration of each season is 6 weeks which includes the initial first week of practices before official games. One of the biggest reasons for the updated calendar is that all sports have the time and potential for COVID-19 cases to lessen which means less strict guidelines.
“Today’s decision by the Executive Board is another reminder of the impact the pandemic has had on Oregon students and schools,” said Peter Weber, OSAA Executive Director vía the OSAA media release. “While disappointed that we need to adjust our original schedule, we believe that keeping three distinct seasons, albeit in shortened seasons, maintains potential opportunities for all students moving forward.”
Season 2(Fall sports)
The fall sports season, which includes cross country, soccer, volleyball, and football will begin in February. With fall sports starting in February, there is added time for case counts to decrease and for certain counties to move out of the Extreme Risk category. According to the OSAA’s media release, outdoor sports such as soccer and cross country have been greenlit by the governor’s office due to the small likelihood of contracting the virus outdoors. Volleyball is tied to the governor’s county risk level guidance in counties deemed as lower, moderate, or high risk due to the sport being played indoors. At this time, football’s plausibility seems uncertain as it remains on the governor’s list of prohibited activities. While many have proposed the possibility of football moving into later into the year to allow for more COVID-19 cases to die down, the OSAA Sports Medicine Advisory Committee (SMAC) voiced that those theories are not supported due to close scheduling conflicts of the 2021 football season.
“In terms of a successful season, I think the OSAA is doing the very best they can given the circumstances,” Junior Tyler Fitts said. “The shortened seasons and overlapping schedules make it difficult for multi-season athletes, but at least we have a decision regarding sports than if all sports were cancelled.”
Season 3(spring sports)
Season 3 features all regular sports and activities (baseball, softball, golf, tennis, and track and field), all which have been permitted by state guidance as all spring sports are outdoor activities. Season 3 will begin on April 5th and extend into roughly the third week of May. Due to close scheduling, potential challenges may arise for athletes who play sports in the spring and winter season because winter practices start during the final week of games for spring season.
“I am mostly disappointed in the new calendar because I play football, baseball, and I ski,” Junior Hayden Smith said. “The overlap between skiing and baseball is six weeks with preseason workouts, which feels tough to manage. Since the seasons are so close together I had to cut out football to make time for ski racing and baseball.”
Season 4(winter sports)
The Jesuit 2020-21 sports season concludes with the winter sports season which includes traditional winter sports (swimming,wrestling, and basketball). The winter season starts in the middle of May and concludes in late June. While Jesuit does not have a wrestling team, moving a high contact sport like basketball to the very end of the year increases the possibility of a basketball season. Currently, OSAA has prohibited basketball, but with nearly a half year until the winter season starts, a change remains hopeful.
Other OSAA activities
Many other school activities have been revised in order for the school to regulate guidelines. These activities include speech, solo music, dance/drill, cheerleading, choir, and band/orchestra. Activities such as choir and band/orchestra have been moved towards the end of the year to allow for a possibility of each performing in person. Other activities like cheer and dance have been moved later in the year to allow for possible outdoor practices. There is no definite season for these activities, but rules allowing, most of these activities should start in April.
Jesuit High School is also holding pre-season workouts to prepare students for the sports season. All pre-season workouts are optional, but since many pre-season workouts begin a week before games, they are highly encouraged.
Jesuit administration recently sent out a school-wide email that provides further details on all aspects of each season and each sport. The OSAA website also provides the official calendar for the 2020-2021 sports season while detailing the safety of each season in their media statement.
Kavish Siddhartha is a staff writer for the Jesuit Chronicle. Kavish is a junior at Jesuit High School and has been interested in journalism since a young...
Guidelines for sports: what’s happening?
Sword Fern
An empty high school track and field and football stadium. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en No changes were made to the following photo.
With the adjusting style of the new hybrid online learning, Jesuit High School has created fall sports practices as a stress-free and inviting environment to meet friends and get exercise in order to bring the community together. This fall, 657 athletes have participated in practices in 18 different sports throughout nine weeks. Instead of sports teams meeting during all weekdays like the regular school year, the new format has most sports only meeting twice a week due to the fact that league games aren’t being played.
“The primary goal of the fall was social and emotional and community health,” Athletic Director Mike Hughes said. “It was to get students to be together as a community and to have fun together with their friends while exercising.”
The new safety guidelines implemented includes coaches and staff taking the temperature of all athletes, athletes wearing masks at all times, and requiring athletes to complete a basic health check for symptoms. With many sports having to use a singular ball, numerous sports went extra lengths to constantly clean their balls with alcohol spray and wipes during water breaks and timeouts.
“We had to follow the guidelines put on place by the state which meant in order to stay COVID free, we had to wear masks at all times, stay as socially distant as possible, and keep our bags at least 6 feet apart from each other,” varsity soccer player Landon Azavedo said.
Throughout the entirety of fall practices, there was only one athlete in a sport who came to practice exposed with the virus. The student came to one practice with the virus, but fortunately, there was no further spread. Jesuit was prepared for such precautions and took immediate protocol to addressing the situation. The main protocol for potential COVID exposure is to be as transparent as possible to the parents and the athletes. Jesuit notified everybody who attended the practice and cancelled the practice for the next two weeks. While there was some concern for a few athletes who seemed to have symptoms, all tests came back negative, and Jesuit remained vocal and transparent by letting families know that members of the team were being tested for the virus.
“We went throughout the entire fall with no COVID spread to anybody,” Hughes said.
The protocols of wearing masks, socially distancing, and taking temperatures were a success, leaving fall practices a completely safe environment.
The OSAA has also created a new calendar for each sports season: season two – the winter sports season which will roughly be from January to February, season three – the fall sports season, which will roughly be from March to April, and season 4 – the spring sports season, which will roughly be from May to June.
In the next few paragraphs, Mr. Hughes also offered some insights about his predictions for the schedule of the 2020/21 Jesuit sports year.
Predictions for the Spring/Fall season
“I am very confident about the fall and spring sports seasons happening,”Hughes said. “Right now, we could potentially play a scrimmage soccer game, tennis game, or a baseball game against another school. And If it’s allowed now, I have to think it’s going to be allowed in May.”
With the expected timeline of the fall and spring sports seasons to start in March, sports that can be modified to COVID guidelines like soccer and volleyball should have a good chance of starting on time.
“I think in March, we will be able to play soccer, volleyball, and certainly cross country,” Hughes said.
Other fall sports like football and lacrosse face an uphill battle due to the closeness of the players and with both sports being contact sports.
“Winter” Sports
Likewise, other winter sports, like basketball, remain complicated due to increasing COVID cases. Practices for basketball are supposed to begin on December 28, so one plausible option being discussed is to move the basketball season into the spring sports season, which is roughly around May, allowing for more time for COVID to die down. With sports such a basketball facing unlikely odds to start in January, the better option might be to change the season rather than to cancel. This could be a potential hardship for students who play both basketball and a spring sport, but one sport is better than none.
Taking a different approach than rescheduling, swimming is an example of a winter sport that could start off virtual. Jesuit is trying to rent some private pools for the swim team in which the team would hopefully be able to train and time themselves and compare against other schools in a virtual competition.
While sports like basketball and swimming might face some difficulty starting on time, a winter sport like ski racing has a large plausibility to practice on schedule due to the fact that the skiers are already wearing masks and gloves and they’re racing one at a time.
While Mr. Hughes is confident that many sports can be played in the latter part of the second semester, all of these decisions are made by the governor, the Oregon Health Authority, and the OSAA.
On December 7th, the OSAA is conducting a meeting about the fate of winter sports. The executive board of the OSAA will make the impending decision about if the winter season will be held on schedule or if any sports will be shifted to different seasons. To learn more about the upcoming decisions about winter sports, you can check out the OSAA website for more information. There will also be more information on the athletic page of the Jesuit website after OSAA has come to a decision on December 7th, and Jesuit High School plans to send out a school-wide email a few days after the decision. If the new calendar and guidelines are still confirmed after December 7, Jesuit High School should have a promising and exciting year for sports.
Kavish Siddhartha is a staff writer for the Jesuit Chronicle. Kavish is a junior at Jesuit High School and has been interested in journalism since a young...
Podcast: The GOAT Show-1996 Chicago Bulls vs. 2017 Golden State Warriors
Listen to the GOAT Show on Spotify!
Anton Baricevic is a proud editor for the Jesuit Chronicle. As a member of the class of 2022, Anton decided to take Journalism because his sister Mia,...
Kavish Siddhartha is a staff writer for the Jesuit Chronicle. Kavish is a junior at Jesuit High School and has been interested in journalism since a young...
NBA Draft Predictions
Sam Wasson
NBA Logo on Court
The NBA Draft is coming up quick and will be very interesting this year because of the Coronavirus. The Draft was supposed to be held at The Barclays Center in Brooklyn but now will be held at the ESPN headquarters in Connecticut. All the players will be connected through online video conferences. This is the first draft in 45 years that has not been held in June.
Another reason that this year’s draft will be interesting is that this year’s draft will be hard on the teams drafting because the college basketball season was cut short last year. During March Madness prospects emerge but last year it was canceled.
This article will go over my Mock draft for this year’s top five picks.
With the first pick in the NBA Draft, the Minnesota Timberwolves select Anothony Edwards from the University of Georgia.
Edwards is a 6-foot-5-inch, 225 pound guard that played very well in Georgia and improved his draft stock by showing off his skills on social media. The Timberwolves already have a star point guard and center in D’Angelo Russel and Karl- Anthony Towns, so they do not need James Wieman or LaMelo Ball. Edwards does not need the ball all time and can play off-ball with Russel being ball dominant. Edwards is a strong and very quick player that reminds me of Dwayne Wade.
With the second pick in the NBA Draft, the Golden State Warriors select James Wiseman out of Memphis University.
Wiseman is a 7-foot-1-inch, 240 pound center that had a good season at Memphis, but was involved in some controversy and had to leave Memphis early. The Warriors are a very good team that had an injury-ridden season last year, which led to them getting a high pick. I think Wiseman is a player that can help The Warriors return to being championship contenders. Wiseman getting rebounds for Steph and Clay would make the team unstoppable.
With the third pick in the NBA Draft the Charlotte Hornets select Deni Avdija from the Euroleague.
Avdija is a 6-foot-9-inch, 215 pound forward that has played great in the Euroleague. Players coming out of Europe are always very interesting because they have not grown up in the AAU system like most of the other players, so he hasn’t been seen as much. The Hornets are a horrible team that needs help almost everywhere. Avdija has great handles for his size and if his shot continues to develop, he will be a great player.
With the fourth pick in the NBA Draft, the Chicago Bulls select LaMelo Ball from the Illawarra Hawks.
Ball is a 6-foot-6-inch, 180 pound guard that has bounced around from different countries and teams for the past several years. He has been in the media spotlight for a while now because of his famous dad, Lavar Ball and his older brothers Liangelo and Lonzo Ball. LaMello is a great passer and a good shooter, but lacks on defense. I think LaMelo would pair well with Bulls players Coby White and Zach Levine because of his great passing.
With the fifth pick in the NBA Draft the Cleveland Cavaliers select Obi Toppin from Dayton University.
Toppin is a 6-foot-9-inch, 220 pound power forward that took the world by storm at Dayton. The Cavaliers have been struggling since Lebron left, but have good young players like Collin Sexton and Darius Garland. I think Obi can grow and improve his game to become a great player and mesh with the Cavalier’s roster.
JJ Gray is a junior and this will be his second year in journalism student, he is excited to be in the class and have a great time. In JJ’s...
Fay Lustria Verbally Commits to Swim at UCLA
Fay Lustria
Junior Fay Lustria verbally commits to swim at UCLA after graduation.
This week, I had the opportunity to interview junior Fay Lustria, a talented swimmer who recently announced her verbal commitment to UCLA via social media. Although she has a few years before she begins attending the university, she is excited for this new journey to start.
Kerman: How long have you been swimming?
Lustria: I started when I was six years-old. It’s crazy to think that I’ve been practicing in pools for a whole decade!
Kerman: Where do you swim, or what club do you swim for? And how often are you swimming nowadays?
Lustria: I swim at THPRD for Tualatin Hills Swim Club. My current practice schedule is very hectic since I practice all seven days of the week and swimming is a year round sport too! Everyday after school, I swim for two hours and then lift weights for another hour. On Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays, I swim before school from 5-7 AM, and then again after school for another two hours. I spend about 3-5 hours per day at the swimming pool.
Kerman: Obviously there’s a ton of sports out there, and swimming is one of the more unique choices…what do you like most about swimming?
Lustria: Growing up, my parents always wanted me to stay active, so they enrolled me in a variety of different sports, but I never liked [any of] them as much as I enjoyed swimming. I’ve always loved the feeling of being underwater. My favorite part about swimming is the combination of a docile and competitive atmosphere it creates. Sometimes I view swimming as a respite from my busy life, and sometimes I see it as a challenge that motivates me to work as hard as possible.
Kerman: How did you commit to UCLA? How did they approach you?
Lustria: Getting recruited is definitely a wild process. Immediately following my sophomore year, I was contacted by many Division 1 schools. I [went] on weekly calls with each one to interview their coaches and swimmers about the different aspects of their college. UCLA’s head coach, Jordan Wolfrum, reached out to me and offered many reasons as to why I should attend UCLA. The first one [was] that they have one of the best collegiate swimming programs in the country. Second, they have outstanding academics and an amazing computer science program, which I’ve decided to major in. Third, the team culture is filled with so much uplifting energy and positivity. But the most important reason of all is that their athletes receive gourmet meals, and I LOVE good food! Her description of UCLA convinced me that it was a place where I could really thrive, and I’m thrilled I get to spend four years at such a prestigious school!
Kerman: How are you feeling about committing to UCLA? Excited? Nervous? Relieved?
Lustria: All of the above! After spending several months trying to come to a final decision, I’m relieved that I don’t have to deal with copious amounts of stress anymore. I am a bit nervous about going into a completely foreign environment, all by myself, with unknown people and places, but overall I’m mostly excited to attend UCLA because it’s a brand new experience!
Kerman: What are you most excited about?
Lustria: I’m most excited to see how I develop as a swimmer. UCLA has every possible resource an athlete could ever desire. Their various weight trainers, nutritionists, physical therapists, sports psychologists, etc. will all have an impact on my performance, and I can’t wait to see how it can push me to my highest potential!
Chase Kerman, a Junior at Jesuit High School, is excited to explore Journalism and grow as a writer in her first year taking the class. At Jesuit, Chase...
Slide Show: Fall Athletic Commitment Signing
Lucy Menendez is a senior at Jesuit High School and first time journalism student. Lucy plays basketball at Jesuit and is involved in multiple clubs. Her...
Podcast: The Jesuit Sportscast Episode 1
New Fall Workout Guidelines
Mr. Mike Hughes
Jesuit women’s volleyball team practicing outside
The Jesuit announced in an email on September 13 that all student athletes must have followed CDC guidelines regarding physical distancing and wearing masks prior to attending campus for scheduled fall workouts. Jesuit student athletes cannot participate in fall workouts if they have failed to follow CDC guidelines 14 days prior to entering campus.
“The main purpose of these fall workouts is social and emotional health. Practicing once or twice a week for 4-5 weeks is not going to move the needle on our next league title or state ranking. The focus will be fitness, community building and fun,” athletic director Mr. Mike Hughes said.
For senior cross country runner, Oliva Silenzi, fall workouts mean just that: fun.
“When first hearing about the workouts I was super excited just to be able to go to campus. That was what I was most looking forward to honestly, just being able to go and run again at Jesuit,” Silenzi said.
Jesuit then followed up with a second email that announced new guidelines for athletes and coaches who will enter campus. Athletes will be asked a number of health screening questions before practice: “In the past two weeks, have you followed all CDC guidelines, including maintaining six feet of distance and wearing masks when with people not in your family/not in your family’s designated safe pod?” Students who cannot answer yes to all these questions will not be allowed on campus. If a student is untruthful in their response, the student may face disciplinary consequences.
“We are concerned that some students may unknowingly bring COVID-19 onto our campus…” Hughes said. “If students are acting in irresponsible ways such as attending indoor social gatherings outside their immediate families, especially without wearing masks, or participating in club sports that do not require masks when indoors or when closer than 6 feet, then we are concerned. Students need to know that this type of risky behavior not only puts themselves at risk, but it potentially exposes our athletes, coaches, the families of other athletes and the general community to COVID-19 spread.”
Jesuit established that players must wear masks at all times, games and scrimmages will not be allowed, and no drill will involve contact between players.
“[The players] are missing out on the actual game play so we are trying to find a balance of fun and overall football development… Just being around each other is a huge win,” football coach Kyle Carter said. “I think mental health is the number one thing we need to be aware of and focus on. This is a great way to get people out and be around their friends, classmates, coaches and teachers. Just to get out whatever was bottled up inside them during these past six months of Covid.”
Jesuit plans that the new guidelines will provide a safe environment for athletes to workout while finally being able to rejoin their teammates and coaches on campus.
Lucy Menendez is a senior at Jesuit High School and first time journalism student. Lucy plays basketball at Jesuit and is involved in multiple clubs. Her...
2020 NFL Draft Overview
The NFL Logo
The NFL Draft is fastly approaching and it is going to be an interesting one. People are yearning for live content and don’t just want to watch Tiger King, I believe the first and second round this year could have more viewers than any draft ever. “I am so excited for the draft and I’m going to watch all seven rounds. It will be so nice to have something live on tv to watch.” said sophomore Luke McDonald. The draft was originally supposed to be in Las Vegas but now it will be on Zoom. There are a lot of very promising prospects in this draft including names like Joe Burrow, Chase Young, Tua Tagovailoa and many more.
The Draft being on zoom will be very interesting because a lot of things could go wrong. The NFL is planning on having someone announce the pick then going to the draft pick and his family, this could go wrong because the NFL is trying to preach social distancing and it probably won’t be the best for the NFL brand if when they switch to the draft pick they have 30 family and friends surrounding them. Many teams and personnel are scared that hackers will hack into their zoom and find out important information such as who they will pick.
Baltimore Ravens Head coach John Harbaugh said “Every time I read something in, like, the Wall Street Journal or the New York Times that talks about how messed up Zoom is, or some of these other deals . . . I immediately text it to our IT people, and [director of football administration] Nick Matteo’s one of those guys, and they assure me that we are doing everything humanly possible. . . . We’ll see what happens. I really wouldn’t want the opposing coaches to have our playbook or our draft meetings. That would be preferable, if we can stay away from that.”
Here is my mock draft for the first ten picks of the draft
With the first pick in the NFL Draft The Cincinnati Bengals select quarterback out of Louisiana State University Joe Burrow.
Joe Burrow had an amazing senior year he was the heisman winner and led his team to win the national championship. His senior year he had 60 touchdowns with only 6 interceptions. The Bengals desperately need a quarterback because last year they benched their long time starter Andy Dalton. He is from Ohio so this is a good pick for the Bengals. “He is for sure the number one pick, did you see him last year. That man is amazing and will for sure be a star” said junior Brennan Humberston.
With the second pick in the NFL Draft the Washington Redskins select defensive end Chase Young out of The Ohio State University.
Chase had a huge junior year and is seen as the most skilled player in this draft. Chase had 46 tackles and 16.5 sacks while missing two games due to a suspension. The Redskins do not need a quarterback because they already have Alex Smith and Dwayne Haskins. Overall this would be a great pick for the redskins to improve their defense.
With the third pick in the NFL Draft the Detroit Lions select cornerback Jeff Okudah out of The Ohio State University.
Jeff was one of the best corners in college last year as a junior and a great pick for the lions. Jeff’s junior year he had 35 five total tackles and 3 interceptions. The Lions already have their franchise quarterback in Mathew Stafford, their weakest part of their team is their secondary.
With the fourth pick in the NFL Draft the New York Giants select Jedrick Wills Jr. offensive linemen out of Alabama.
Jedrick had a great junior season and is a perfect pick for the Giants. The Giants found their franchise quarterback last year in Daniel Jones and now they need to protect him. Run blocking is one of Jedricks talents which will be perfect for the Giants pro bowl running back Saquon Barkley.
With the fifth pick in the NFL Draft they Miami Dolphins select quarterback Tua Tugovailo out of the University of Alabama.
Tua is an amazing playmaker that has gotten hurt too many times, many teams are scared of Tua because of it. Tua had multiple ankle problems and hip surgery plus more during his time at Alabama. Right now it is hard for team doctors to get a look at players due to coronavirus. The Dolphins need a quarterback to join coach Brian flores.
With the sixth pick in the NFL Draft the Chargers select Quarterback Justin Herbert out of the University of Oregon.
Justin had a great senior season leading the ducks to win a Rose Bowl. Justin had 32 touchdowns and 6 interceptions his senior year and had a great football IQ. The Chargers do have quarterback Tyrod Taylor which is nice for Herbert because he could sit behind Tyrod for a year and learn how to be a pro quarterback.
With the seventh pick in the NFL Draft the Carolina Panthers select linebacker Isaiah Simmons out of the University of Clemson.
Isaiah had a great college career with 104 total tackles his junior year. He is a great leader and led the Clemson defense to a National championship game his junior year. The Panthers already have their offense set led by new quarterback Teddy Bridgewater and running back Christian McAffrey and they need someone to command their defense.
With the eighth pick in the NFL Draft the Arizona Cardinals select Offensive linemen Tristan Wirfs.
Tristan is the best tackle in the draft and the cardinals could really use him. Kyler Murray the Cardinals quarterback was sacked 48 times last year the most in the league. With the duo of Deandre Hopkins and Larry Fitzgerald Kyler is going to need some more time in the pocket.
With the ninth pick in the NFL Draft the Jacksonville Jaguars select quarterback Jordan Love out of Utah state.
Jordan is a big risk but he has a really big upside , he has a great arm but tends to turn the ball over a lot. He had 17 interceptions his junior year in college. Gardner Minshew was a fun experiment for the Jaguars but Jordan could be the quarterback of the future.
With the tenth pick in the NFL Draft the Cleveland Browns select offensive linemen Andrew Thomas out of Georgia.
Andrew Thomas is a big offensive linemen that had a great career blocking for Jake from Georgia. Andrew is flexible and can play both right tackle and left tackle. This is a good pick for the Browns because they have a lot of offensive weapons and they need to get Baker Mayfield more blocking to be successful.
The 2020 NFL draft goes from Thursday April 23 to Saturday April The draft will be on ESPN.
JJ Gray is a junior and this will be his second year in journalism student, he is excited to be in the class and have a great time. In JJ’s...
NCAA changes impact future spring athletes
NCAA has granted senior spring athletes a fifth year of eligibility, leaving possible complications for incoming freshmen.
On March 30, NCAA announced an extended year of eligibility for all senior spring athletes due to the cancellation of their 2020 seasons. While this change allows collegiate seniors to properly finish their college careers, it comes with a great impact, especially on the incoming freshmen recruits.
“I think if I was in a current player’s position I would want another year to play lacrosse, so I understand,” senior Ella Smith said. “However that really affects incoming freshmen because now there will be a lot more players than anticipated.”
Smith, an All-American Vanderbilt University lacrosse commit, was highly sought after by many universities. One of the factors when choosing where to continue her career was roster size and potential playing time.
“I’m really worried about playing time,” Smith said. “I denied some schools because of how big their teams were, so now being part of a team that big is disappointing,”
Many freshmen recruits also often make their final decisions with the graduation of other players in mind.
Senior Patrick Duffy, also named an All American and Syracuse University commit for lacrosse, initially saw this change as a positive before his worry set in.
“My first thought when I saw spring athletes were getting another year of eligibility back was ‘oh that’s good they deserve that,’” Duffy said. “Right after I said that to myself I remembered that the starting goalie for Syracuse this year was a senior. So that is tough because he’s coming back next year, and when I originally committed to Syracuse I planned on him being gone.”
With this new change, NCAA has allowed schools to increase roster sizes beyond scholarship limits to account for this unforeseen alteration, and next years’ teams are sure to be substantially larger than normal. The organization has also expanded the 35 player limit of baseball rosters, the only sport that imposes a regulated size.
“As guys return, the roster will be bigger than expected so maybe the coaches will have to cut some guys or maybe the coaches will look at kids and say they want them to red shirt and sit out next year,” Duffy said. “I really hope I don’t have to have that conversation with my coaches.”
The NCAA has decided to leave it up to the school how they will deal with the financial aid for returning fifth years, and has stated that this flexibility only applies to athletes who would have exhausted their eligibility after the 2020 season (espn.com).
Scholarships are often not guaranteed full-rides for student athletes. With families still having to pay part of the tuition, a fifth year that might not be fully covered by the university, making the financial aspect even trickier and the desire to red shirt as a freshman less likely.
The extended eligibility applies to all spring sports including: baseball, softball, men’s and women’s tennis, men’s and women’s golf, men’s and women’s track and field, men’s and women’s lacrosse, rowing, men’s volleyball, beach volleyball and women’s water polo. The extension also aligns with rules regulating four seasons of play, essentially mimicking the ability to red shirt. Despite the NCAA announcement, the Ivy League has decided not to extend senior eligibility.
Not only does this change impact playing time and financial resources, but may also change the team dynamic.
While these impacts could potentially cause friction amongst teammates, Duffy believes that the drive and competitiveness of collegiate athletics will certainly still be present.
“As for the team dynamic, I still think there will be that intensity and commitment to getting better and being the best team we can be,” Duffy said.
For some freshmen entering a large and already close team may cause worry.
“I think that it will be hard going into a team who has had a lot of time together because we are new and will have to try to manage joining a huge team,” Smith said.
Though entering a new and already close team might lead to stress, bringing back the intensity of older seniors might raise teams’ levels of cohesiveness and increase leadership.
“I feel like the NCAA’s decision to allow players another year of eligibility will help boost the team morale, given that seniors stay,” senior Mick Abel said. “I am extremely excited to get on campus this fall!”
As the uncertainty surrounding this virus continues, fall sports are also under review. Despite a lack of solid information, the virus is predicted to possibly spike again in the fall and ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit said he would be “shocked” to see a college football season in 2020 (sportingnews.com).
Virginia Larner is a senior at Jesuit. She has been on the journalism staff for the last three years, and the editorial board for the last two. Each year...
Spring sports cancelled amidst pandemic
Jesuit High School
Without spring athletics, Jesuit’s spring teams have not practiced or had games or meets at Cronin in weeks.
With spring sports and the remainder of the school year being cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many athletes at Jesuit, including both out-of-season athletes and in-season athletes, have been significantly affected. The closure prevents these athletes from accessing the weight room, the track, batting cages, and various fields and courts that would have normally been used for training, practices, and games or meets.
The pandemic has challenged athletes to stay active, particularly for the Seniors that anticipate practicing and playing in the upcoming summer and fall for college sports.
COVID-19 moreover complicates the upcoming spring signing process on the national level because of the halt of the spring season.
For senior varsity track runner Jonathan Ulrich, although he might not be running in collegiate meets until next spring, he, like many other athletes, is still trying to practice and stay in shape.
“I was practicing at Beaverton High School for a while but then they locked their gates,” said Ulrich. “I’ve moved to Sunset, even gone as far out as [Lake Oswego] where I know a track is open just to get some reps in.”
Ultimately, there’s no official replacement for the loss of practices and games and many athletes are simply doing their best to keep a positive work ethic.
“[I’m] just keeping myself in shape and not letting my skills go away completely,” said senior varsity baseball player Kevin Blair. “I use a tee and a net in my garage to try to keep up on [them].”
Winter sports were partially impacted by the outbreak, too. While the Jesuit swim team and women’s basketball team did officially finish the season before COVID-19 affected school and sports, the Jesuit men’s basketball team playoff run was cancelled just hours before their first game was supposed to happen.
“We were all at Ernesto’s before the game when Coach Potter walked in with a somber look right before he said, ‘Unfortunately fellas, our chance at winning back-to-back championships is cancelled,’” said junior varsity basketball player James Lang.
There have been discussions circulating about spring sports being played in the summer when the virus is hopefully better contained, but for now there isn’t too much confidence in something like this viably happening.
“This scenario isn’t likely, as the OSAA had a meeting on April 1st saying that they are not on board with extending the spring season into the summer,” said Ulrich. “I would love to compete in the summer, but the OSAA isn’t likely to approve this.”
Michael Lang is going into his senior year at Jesuit High School. Born in Portland, Oregon, Michael has two older siblings at the University...
Chloe Foerster races to the top to win titles in Cross Country and Track & Field
Choe Foerster during her state meet for track running the 4 by 4 relay
SPORTS
Chloe Foerster races to the top to win titles in
cross country and track & field
As track season starts up again, sophomore Chloe Foerster has already proven her varsity position with many titles for Cross Country and Track & Field.
In her freshman season, Foerster earned 3rd in districts and 7th in State for Cross Country and won state in the 800m and 4 by 4 for Track & Field.
“A big goal last year for me was to get a state title,” Foerster said. “I worked really hard and I achieved that, so I was really proud of myself.”
Foerster has enjoyed running since 6th grade and was on the varsity cross country team as early as the summer before her freshman year.
“I went on beach trips during the summer and those trips have been one of my most favorite memories in cross country,” Foerster said.
This year, Foerster won cross country districts, earned 4th in State, and placed 6th place at Regionals.
“Placing individually in state for Cross Country is something that I have always wanted to do, and it was something that was a goal of mine,” Foerster said.
Foerster has high hopes for this Track & Field season and big ambitions.
“I hope that I can win state again in the 800m and 4 by 4,” Foerster said. “Also I want to continue to get faster and stronger each season and get a P.R.”
Despite her running accomplishments, it hasn’t been easy as she has had to deal with injury struggles .
“Last year during track season, I was also playing soccer so I got a bunch of injuries including my ankle but towards the end I recovered and it was good,” Foerster said. “This year during cross country, I couldn’t run for a month or so because I had a knee injury.”
Foerster has been able to get through these hurdles and continue to be a strong athlete and teammate.
“She works harder than anyone else,” said junior Olivia Silenzi, who is also on the varsity Cross Country and Track and Field team.
“She will never take an easy day. If she doesn’t feel good or if she just wants to go easy she will always push through that and go hard that day. She is very driven and it pays off.”
“She is very driven and competitive,” Silenzi said . “She is very positive and encouraging. She is never negative and she is very funny. We are always usually laughing about something.”
Annie Landgraf is a managing editor for journalism. She was born in Lake Oswego, Oregon and went to Lake Oswego schools her whole life before...
