COVID-19 has affected many parts of Morgan Athletics. The sports season was shortened for field hockey, volleyball, and soccer, and there was even a modified season for football. A big part of Morgan Athletics is the spectators: the parents, the staff, and the student section. During COVID-19 to limit as much transmission as possible,  there have been regulations put into place resulting in a limited number of spectators. Currently, for outdoor sports, each athlete is allowed two spectators only at home games. There cannot be any spectators for the away team. At the gate whether at the Indian River Complex or the Peters Complex, the spectator has to check-in and be confirmed by the staff working at the gate. If their name is on the list, then they are allowed to enter and watch the game. If they are not on the list, then they are asked to leave.  For indoor sports like volleyball, there are not any spectators allowed at the games because it is indoors. 

Assistant Principal Chris Luther said, “We met as a Shoreline, all of the superintendents met, all of the schools met and decided that allowing a couple of the parents to support the kids would not violate anything the Governor set out.”

A big question asked by the students is when there will be a student section allowed at the sports games.  Mr. Luther said, “Right now the fall has been set, but as the winter season starts, everyone is going to be talking once again.”  Mr. Luther said the winter sports season is especially difficult because all the sports are indoor sports.

COVID-19 is so unpredictable, are we having a second wave? Will it die down? Mr. Luther said, “We have to look at the numbers of the transmission rate of the virus to figure out how to maintain safety, but the likelihood of students sitting shoulder to shoulder at a game is low.”

There have been other ways to watch sports games live. Some games are streamed and people can access it through Facebook.

Social studies teacher Diana Rizzo who has always worked at the sports games at the gate said the games are quiet. She said, “It’s different. I am used to more of a hustle and bustle, kids coming, which makes it much more fun and interesting.” There have been some problems with these rules, Mrs. Rizzo said, “There have been many foreign spectators who come with creative stories, one pretended to be a cameraman for the other team and was carrying a lunchbox.”

Originally the CIAC gave guidelines based on information they were given by the Department of Public Health and their own medical committee that said that there will be no spectators at all during the fall sports season to limit and reduce risk. Athletic Director Lewis Pappariella said, “Superintendents got involved, to see if we could make any sort of accommodation for  spectators because we know the importance of having parents supporting their kids.” From there, the Shoreline came together to establish a common policy across the Shoreline, which was the two spectators per athlete policy.

We do not know and it is hard to make any predictions on what will happen to spectators at the sports game for winter and spring sports. Mr. Pappariella said, “It is all dependent on the health metrics. We will see and continue to take into account the need to have fans present,” He explained that they want to welcome fans, but “we have to consider what the governor is saying, the DPH is saying, and local health departments are saying” before making decisions. 

As of right now, we do not know whether we will have spectators for the upcoming sports season. We have to wait and see what happens to COVID-19 in Connecticut. We are all hoping there will be a dog pound this year.