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New Jersey Coaches, Athletes React To Plan For Shortened Cross Country SeasonPublished by
Differing Views Spur Discussion Over How Best To Handle A Complicated Problem
By Theresa Juva Brown for DyeStat
For the first time since the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association was formed in 1919, high school boys in New Jersey won’t compete for state group titles in cross country.
In addition, for the first time in its 48-year history, the Meet of Champions won't be held for high school boys and girls this fall.
The drastic changes to the upcoming cross country season are part of a plan NJSIAA announced last week that will allow high school fall sports to proceed, with restrictions, amid the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic, a crisis that's fueling heated debates across the country about whether schools can safely reopen in the coming months.
Under the NJSIAA plan for fall sports, cross country would begin Oct. 1 and conclude at the end of November with sectional championships. In previous years, after sectionals, teams advance to the NJSIAA State Group boys and girls cross country championships, and some teams and individual runners then go on to the Meet of Champions, where everyone competes for state titles. The Groups and MOC events take place at Holmdel Park. Sean Walsh, head coach of the North Hunterdon High girls cross country team, which captured last year’s Meet of Champions title, said the association’s blanket plan for all fall sports doesn’t work. “In this situation, cross country has an opportunity to do things that maybe other sports cannot at this point,” he said. “The plan right now doesn't make sense to me to have a Sectional Meet, but not have the Groups and (Meet of Champions). If the Sectional Meet is possible, the other meets are possible as well.” NJSIAA officials have argued that eliminating the championship competition for fall sports is necessary to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. “Removing the possibility for statewide, postseason competition is intended to convey the specific message that the fall season is specifically about opportunity, engagement and participation,” said Denis Nelson, a member of the NJSIAA COVID-19 Sports Advisory Task Force and the athletic director at River Dell Regional High in Oradell. “It is not about winning championships. From a health perspective, it’s appropriate to keep sports as local as possible.” Walsh took issue with the notion that sports shouldn’t be about winning titles this fall, calling the statement “very disappointing to the coaches and athletes who take their sports so seriously.” “Sports in high school,” he said, “when taken seriously by athletes, the schools, the parents, and the coaches, can have as dramatic an effect as academics and learning can.” But some coaches say they feel relieved there is a plan for any racing, considering the unpredictability of COVID-19 cases in the state.
“Even if it is an abbreviated season, to be able to meet up, work out together and be able to get some meets in would be a refreshing thing,” said Matt Joyce, assistant cross country coach at Immaculate Heart Academy, an all-girls Catholic high school in Washington Township.
Sean McCafferty, head cross country coach at all-boys Christian Brothers Academy, which won the Meet of Champions last year for the third consecutive time, said it's important to stay focused on the moment. “We, as a team, can control ourselves,” he said. “We will love this six weeks of racing and make sure we are are ready to be the best CBA team we can be." Senior Ben Santos, who led his team to victory last fall with a 15th-place finish at the Meet of Champions, is disappointed the biggest meets are canceled, but “the few opportunities I get to race will be worthwhile, knowing very well that each one could be my last high school race,” he said. His teammate Nick Sullivan, a sophomore, says these uncertain times have made their team bond stronger than ever. “I have made it a personal goal of mine to lead by example and reach out to others and check in on them,” he said. “It is without a doubt that finding motivation and excitement to run is difficult through all of this, but being there for one another and pushing each other makes it a hell of a lot easier.” Meanwhile, Walsh says he hopes NJSIAA will ultimately allow the group title and state championship meets. “I am the utmost optimist and will continue to believe that the plan will change, and that it will change for the better,” he said.
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