At Camas High School and across the state the normal start of the 2020-2021 sports seasons has been postponed due to COVID-19. All sports have been rescheduled to start on later dates, but nothing is for certain. The withdrawal from school sports has been tough on CHS athletes.
Camas School District Director of Athletics Rory Oster said, “Right now we are scheduled to begin our winter sports offerings on December 28th. Football on February 17th, the rest of the regular fall season sports on March 1st and spring sports offerings to begin on April 26th.”
Student athletes have had a very long time to prepare for their potential seasons. So far CHS athletes have been training on their own, but recently the campus has opened back up for small group workouts led by coaches.
The CHS Head Football Coach, track coach, and P.E. teacher Jon Eagle said that he misses the face to face interactions with athletes. He is hopeful that the football season will start on schedule and that the papermakers can be crowned victorious again.
Eagle said after observing some practices, “Our players have been very impressive with their pre-season training and preparations. I just watched 50 Papermakers run a player-led practice and was super impressed with what I saw.”
He added, ”We have great structure here, great facilities, coaching, but the number one reason we have success is the family structure in this community.”
Even though it has been a rough time for athletes, they are trying to stay positive.
CHS Junior Noah Christensen said, “We meet at our QB1’s house at 4:00 and every morning at Doc. We see this as an opportunity to become better and prove that we can also be the best in the state.”
CHS Cross Country Head Coach Laurie Porter has tried to stay in contact with athletes during this time.
“I have sent out training plans for students and I have encouraged them to train and stay fit,” she said.
Porter hopes all student-athletes can thrive mentally and physically in all aspects of their journey.
CHS Sophomore Toby Jeffries said, “I have been diligently following the XC training plan throughout both the summer and the first month and a half of this school year. I do believe it is helping me improve and prepare for whatever is yet to come to the realm of CHS sports.”
CHS Senior Bella Distante really misses competing and is hoping for the possibility of a season.
“I have stayed active by running everyday and trying to improve my speed,” she said.
CHS Junior Evan Jenkins runs cross country and track. Running has brought him several achievements and he hopes to compete at the next level in college.
“Since the season is cancelled, I made a trip to Arizona for about three weeks so I can get some races,” said Jenkins.
He has already run two of those races and believes that his training has not peaked quite yet. Jenkins wants to stay mentally focused through this unusual year and come out successful in the future.
Even though everyone has been out of school and away from sports for over seven months, the break has not been all bad. Both students and coaches expect performances to be better than ever.
CHS Senior Gavin Ensinger said, “The situation is unfortunate, but when they (sports) return I expect performances to be greater than ever. Most athletes would die to get back to sports, many are working harder than ever with the time off.”
CHS athletes should keep themselves updated with the WIAA (Washington Interscholastic Activities Association) because it is the overall decision-maker for high school athletics in the state.
Oster said, “I think in one month from now, at the completion of the next board meeting, we will have a very good idea of what the rest of the school year will look like for high school athletics.”
Despite the hold on sports, players and coaches are hopeful for a possible return.
Camasonian journalists Sam Geiger, Nora Melcher, and Daisy Gooch contributed to this article.
