Although there was hope that sports would be returned to normal, rules are still being put in place for high school athletes, especially for the Penns Valley women’s volleyball team.

Last year COVID caused many new rules to be put in place for high school athletes. This year, there was hope that everything would be back to normal however due to a spike in COVID cases they are not. The Penns Valley volleyball team is one example of this. The team began the season unmasked and with few rules pertaining to COVID. However, after a spike in cases on the team, multiple girls were sent into quarantine. Due to the spike in cases, the girls are now wearing masks during play. Additionally, the bench must be socially distanced. Although these new rules help protect and prevent the spread of COVID it does affect the players mentality. Volleyball team member Julia Emel states, “it has been hard not knowing if our season could be shut down any minute but we are trying to be proactive and positive”.

Other teams such as the girls’ soccer team and the football team have also been impacted because of COVID. Both teams had to quarantine multiple players due to a spike in cases on the teams and now must wear masks in the locker rooms. Soccer player Ellie Brinker states, “the first game of the season, that our lady rams were looking forward to was taken away because of COVID-19”.  The boys soccer team is the one team that has had little impact, with no cases directly impacting the team.

All athletes and coaches are hopeful that they will be able to have full seasons.