Gilmer High School softball and volleyball will be the first teams to begin their fall sports seasons.
With local COVID-19 (coronavirus) confirmed cases still increasing, spectators should be aware of safety protocols in place at local fields and gyms.
GHS kicks off its softball season Saturday at Mountain View Field. Originally, Dacula and North Oconee were scheduled to make the trip but those plans have changed.
Now, Gilmer will host Sonoraville and the varsity will take the field at 10:30 a.m. with a junior varsity game afterward.
“We’re trying to take every precaution to keep our athletes and fans safe,” said GHS athletic director Matt Johnson when asked about the decision to alter the schedule.
“Right now, I feel like we can better control one opponent versus two. There are so many requirements about what to clean down. We would’ve had an opponent in our home dugout (for the Dacula versus North Oconee game), and I just wasn’t prepared for that at this time.”
Much like the Georgia State Board of Education, the Georgia High School Association has given local organizations the power to make their own decisions on how proceed with sports.
The region meeting is scheduled for Thursday morning and one topic for athletic directors is how to best handle game day operations.
“We’re taking this one week at a time,” Johnson said. “My plan is to have the region meeting to gain some consistency and get more ideas.
“Softball is the No. 1 thing on my mind right now because it’s the closest thing to us,” Johnson said. “We’ll open the first base side for our home fans and same thing for the visitors down the third base line. In the stands in the center, that will basically be our social distancing zone.”
There will be separate concession stands for home and visiting fans. Only prepackaged food will be available. Masks are strongly encouraged but not required.
The GHS volleyball team will make its way to Fannin County next Monday, Aug. 10.
The annual Mountain Madness event was originally scheduled between Fannin, Gilmer, Pickens and Dawson County. However, both Pickens and Dawson dropped out.
Fannin will alter its schedule this season to make social distancing more manageable for those inside the gym.
“Instead of trying to have a tri- or quad-match with multiple teams and communities trying to social distance, we’re going to duals,” said Fannin County High School athletic director David Henson.
“That way you have two teams and two communities. In the past, we’ve used a two-net system and we’ll only use a one-net system with one community and team on one side and the other team and community on the other side to maintain social distancing. We want to promote as healthy of an environment as possible.”
He added, “We have a fluid document that we are basing the guidance and modifications for volleyball, per the GHSA. One of those things says spectators are required to social distance.”
Masks are strongly recommended and encouraged but not required. Fannin’s concession stand will be open but limited to prepackaged items as well with minimal contact between servers and fans.
The Lady Cats must come “ready to play” and will not have access to a locker room at anytime during the match.
“I’ve talked with Matt Johnson and several other ADs so we’re being consistent among systems and regions,” Henson said. “We want to provide safety for students and spectators the best we can.”
The junior varsity Lady Cats will take the court at 5 p.m. next Monday at FCHS and the varsity match will follow.