Bromfield athletes will participate in a modified winter sports season this year in all sports except indoor track and field, according to Athletic Director Dave Boisvert. Indoor track and field is tentatively planned to be held during the Fall II sports season, a new “floating” season that begins in late February. Coaches are approaching the upcoming months with positivity and open minds.
On Nov. 20 the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) issued guidance for a revised winter sports season that will begin two weeks later than normal, on Dec. 14. The MIAA approved competition for basketball, hockey, swimming and diving, gymnastics, Alpine skiing, and Nordic skiing.
Indoor track and wrestling have been moved to the Fall II season, which will run from Feb. 22 to April 25. Spring sports will begin April 26.
Bromfield does not offer gymnastics, wrestling, or Nordic skiing. The school’s hockey team is a co-op program with Littleton High School, which Boisvert says he expects will also compete this winter.
General guidance for all sports is similar to that issued at the beginning of the fall season. It includes mandatory mask-wearing when athletes are unable to be appropriately distanced from one another, recommended health screening prior to practice and competition, no locker room access except for the use of toilets, and the elimination of handshakes and high fives.
Swimming and diving competitions are limited to dual or virtual meets. Each team will have either lanes 1 to 3 or 4 to 6 instead of even or odd assignments. Cheering will not be allowed on the pool deck.
Basketball
Basketball guidelines emphasize rules for defense that minimize the time players spend in close proximity to each other. At the start of the game, the jump ball will be replaced with a throw-in, and halftime will be eliminated, while time between quarters will be extended. Game-day rosters are limited to 15 players.
Hockey
Hockey teams are now limited to 20 players instead of 22. Only two players can scrum for the puck; a third will cause play to stop. The scrum cannot last longer than five seconds. Only one player will be allowed in the penalty box at a time. An “auxiliary” box or area that allows for social distancing among penalized players must be created for additional players.
Alpine skiing
Alpine skiing has less stringent sport-specific guidelines. While athletes will be required to wear face masks, they will still be allowed to preview courses prior to competition, something that was not allowed for cross-country running in the fall season. Skiers will also need to stay at least 6 feet apart at the starting line and will practice in pods of no more than 10 athletes.
Ski coach Ray McCarthy is optimistic about the season ahead, despite the extra health precautions his team will need to take. “Every day [that] these kids can get out on the hill and get fresh air and exercise and have fun and laugh and joke with their teammates and challenge themselves and help push each other to become better skiers and racers and better teammates is a huge win,” he wrote in an email to the Press.
Track and field
According to Boisvert, a Fall II track and field season will depend heavily on weather, since meets will be held outdoors. A winter with a lot of snow could make track access unrealistic. Boisvert said there is no set date for the Fall II season to be decided, but he expects a decision will be made in January.
Bromfield’s head track coach, Greg Bourque, said that while a Fall II season is uncertain, he does expect a competitive spring season. Since official practices cannot be held when athletes are out of season, and the school is not open for after-school activities, he said the coaches will work to create training plans that athletes can choose to follow on their own at home.
Even if there is no competitive season during Fall II, Bourque said he hopes to begin practicing together as a team at that point. “As coaches we are less concerned about having competitions [than] we are about getting the kids back into training, both for their physical and mental health.”
Swimming and diving
Swim Coach Amy Gothorpe shared a similar message. She is unsure if her team will be competing this winter and if they do, she says it will probably be in a virtual format. Still, she doesn’t see this year as lost time, but as a reframing.
“Training without [competition] can be incredibly rewarding. There are opportunities to focus more time on day-to-day achievements and setting personal goals.” She wrote in an email to the Press, “Swimming is a life-long sport and COVID-19 may have just provided us a test of our dedication to training, not just competing.”
An opportunity for growth
Basketball Coach Bob Miller said he is approaching this season with “enthusiasm and the expectation that it is going to be very different.” He sees many opportunities for growth in the new methods of play. With masks on, he expects that his players will need to rely more on nonverbal communication and to practice self-management when he is unable to communicate effectively from the sidelines.
Rather than focus on the outcome of each game, he said he will emphasize the importance of applying skills the team learns in practice. “We will look at it as a bit more of a developmental season,” he explained, adding that players will likely switch out more often, which will give some less-experienced athletes more opportunities to get on the court.
Since many of his players are juniors, Miller said he will encourage his athletes to look forward to next year’s season. “The motivation is to prepare for an unbelievable senior year,” he said. “By doing the right things, staying safe … taking advantage of this season as an opportunity to develop those individual and team skills and to incorporate them into game play, who knows what we can achieve next year?”
