Texas private high school league cancels fall sports due to coronavirus pandemic
The Southwest Preparatory Conference, the second-largest private school organization in Texas, announced Friday that it would cancel the 2020 fall athletic season because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“We recognize each of our member schools are under unusual and challenging circumstances regarding each aspect of school operations,” the league said in a press release. “We recognize we are members of a conference with a wide variance in local conditions, approaches and opinions regarding how to handle these challenging circumstances as they relate to athletic competition.
“We recognize our member schools are located in multiple metro areas, spread over a wide geographic area, with varying health conditions, regulations, public opinions and governmental recommendations.”
Falls sports canceled include football, girls and boys volleyball, cross country and field hockey.
“The SPC Board of Directors further approves maintaining existing plans for the winter and spring SPC championship seasons, and those plans be sustained without alteration and played as currently scheduled consistent with current SPC policies,” the league said. “The Operations Committee and SPC board of directors will revisit plans for winter and spring seasons at a later date and determine if any adjustments are required as a result of circumstances at that time.”
SPC, UIL and TAPPS suspended all spring activities because of the coronavirus in March. They were later canceled.
Teams were allowed to work out this summer with guidelines that included masks and social distancing.
The SPC originally said that fall sports could start practice on Sept. 8 and conference games could begin Sept. 21.
The UIL has begun its fall season in Class 4A and below. Volleyball is in its second week and the first and only football scrimmages have been taking place since Thursday. Most of those teams will begin the regular season Aug. 27-29. Class 5A and 6A teams can start practice Sept. 7. TAPPS fall sports will start practice on Sept. 8.
SPC teams from Dallas-Fort Worth are Irving Cistercian, Episcopal School of Dallas, Fort Worth Country Day, Greenhill, Hockaday, Arlington Oakridge, Dallas St. Mark’s and Fort Worth Trinity Valley.
Country Day has won the past two football state championships.
This story was originally published August 21, 2020 at 8:11 PM.
