Published: 3/12/2020 6:11:35 PM
The Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletics Association canceled its winter state championships and pushed the start of spring sports back because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The MIAA Board of Governors voted to cancel basketball and hockey state championships scheduled for the weekend. Two state basketball semifinals – the Division 3 boys and Division 4 girls – tipped a half hour after the announcement. The Maynard girls and Sutton boys will be named co-champions along with the Burke boys and Cathedral girls teams.
The remaining six basketball finals Saturday are canceled, and the state finalists will be named co-champions.
There were supposed to be six hockey state championships at the TD Garden in Boston on Sunday. Pope Francis would have played Arlington in a rematch of their winners bracket final at 3:15 p.m. Instead they’ll be co-champions.
“Getting to the championship and not being able to play, not knowing that yesterday was our last game I’d be playing for Pope and high school hockey was definitely tough,” said Pope Francis senior Logan Dapprich, an Amherst native. “Technically we are state champions, which is nice, but I would have rather had a winner and a loser compared to co-champs.”
Arlington and Pope Francis split three games during the season, as each won once and they tied the other. The Cardinals defeated St. John’s Prep 3-2 in overtime Wednesday to reach the championship. Dapprich and Pope Francis’ four other seniors didn’t know it would be their final time on the ice together.
“Last night was a phenomenal game. We treated it like it was a championship game,” Dapprich said. “It’s sad to now know that was practically a championship game.”
The spring athletic season was scheduled to begin on Monday. Instead, the MIAA is pushing that back to March 30. The decision will be revisited before then due to the fluidity of the situation
Out of season coaching will not be allowed. Games can’t start before the 11th calendar day after the first day of practice.
“This decision is based on available information from numerous health agencies and is made in the best interest of our student-athletes, schools and communities,” MIAA Director of Communications Tara Bennett wrote in an email to the member schools.