Coupeville Sports

Catherine Lhamon and fellow track stars return to action – but with less fans than seen here in 2019. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

One week from today, Coupeville High School sports returns from a year-plus layoff.

When the Wolves host a five-team track meet Thursday, March 4, it will be the first time a CHS squad has squared off with a rival in any sport since Feb. 11, 2020.

As everyone adjusts to a new reality and continues to work through an ongoing pandemic, school officials released a statement reflecting the challenges and their optimism.

It is with great pleasure and optimism that we are writing to you today to talk about athletics starting back up for our high school students.

It has been a long journey and one that we are most likely not through with yet, but at least we have some positive progress to getting back to some normalcy.

The reason for this letter is twofold: one, to explain how Coupeville and its new league, the Northwest 1B/2B League, will move forward with this season and two, to appeal to you, our community, in supporting those decisions that the league and our district has had to make in order for this season to occur in a safe manner.

First and foremost, our league’s focal point was safely getting the kids back on the playing field; it was not about creating opportunities for league, district, or state championships.

While all of us are competitive in nature and we want those opportunities for our students and schools, this year was more about participation.

So it was in that vein that we created shortened seasons which offered game opportunities, and yes, the possibility of a league championship, but more importantly gave our kids a chance to play.

This year is not going to be the same as every other year: officials are struggling with membership, all of our current plans are still very tentative, and it is very possible that games or seasons may have to be canceled.

All of this is and continues to be driven by COVID-19 guidelines and safety protocols that are necessary to control the spread of this virus.

Not everything we will do during our seasons will be popular but it is what our schools and athletic departments are required to follow in order for our kids to have the opportunity to play.

What will all of this mean for families and spectators?

It means that during home events, we are asking that if you are coming to watch that you are healthy and not exhibiting any symptoms, either that day or within 48 hours of your attendance.

For a list of COVID-19 symptoms please see page 2 of this copy of state guidelines — Employervisitorscreeningguidance (1).pdf – Google Drive.

District provided transportation to and from games may be limited due to limitations created by our current in-person school schedules and the limited number of students who can ride on a bus due to social distancing requirements.

This means parents may need to provide transportation to and from some competitions.

No away fans are currently allowed at any athletic event; this is a Northwest 1B/2B League policy.

We will review this policy as each new sports season begins.

This does create the possibility that parents will have to transport their children and not be able to attend competitions.

We require masks to be worn at all times while on our campus or in our facilities; if a mask is not being worn you’ll be asked to leave.

We will ask that you practice social distancing while watching and stay a minimum of six feet apart from anyone who is not part of your household.

Spectators will be limited for athletic events.

We have a limit of 200 total people at all events; this includes teams, coaches, officials, and workers at the events and we will have a process in place that will address how people can attend events such as football, volleyball, and basketball.

For most of our other sports we believe our number of spectators will fall within the given parameters of 200 total people and just ask that you follow the health and safety guidelines as previously mentioned.

The only sport we will not allow any spectators at this year will be our track meets and it is simply a numbers issue.

We will have two home meets this year, March 4 and the Northwest 1B/2B League Meet on April 3; between the athletes, coaching staff and workers needed to run those meets we will easily meet the 200 person limit.

Fortunately for us, and this is true of all events occurring at our track/stadium and our high school gym, we have a streaming system in place and we are already scheduled to stream each one of our events on that system.

You would simply need to go to  High School Sports Online – Stream Live & On Demand (nfhsnetwork.com) and sign up for a subscription in order to view these events.

While this step forward for our athletes is still far from returning to normal, we are excited that it creates an opportunity for our students, especially our senior athletes to play.

So please, as games begin in a week, follow the guidelines, work with us and understand that of all years, this is the year that we put the emphasis on our kids getting to play games for the sake of fun and enjoyment and we are going to work together to ensure that we do this safely.

Thank you,

Willie Smith — CHS/CMS Athletic Director
Geoff Kappes – CHS/CMS Principal
Steve King – Coupeville Schools Superintendent