AD's (Thompson, Doehring) Talk About Spring Sports Season

During the spring, junior high school and high school sports could include baseball, softball, track and boys tennis. As noted on our website, I had already typed all the area high school and junior high schedules day-by-day. Our area includes, Effingham, Effingham St. Anthony, Altamont, Brownstown/St. Elmo, Cowden-Herrick/Beecher City, Cumberland, Dieterich, Neoga, Newton, Stewardson-Strasburg, South Central, Teutopolis and Windsor.

I sent an email and hopefully, all the A.D.'s received it, asking five questions and those included:

1. What all did you have to do at the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, such as canceling games, umps, etc.?

2. Did you think it would go on this long?

3. What have you found has been the hardest part of your job over this?

4. What are you doing to pass the time, projects, family time, etc.?

5. Any words of wisdom for your student/athletes?

I already have received many replies from the athletic directors, so each day I will put several of them with their answers online. If I haven't gotten in touch with these AD's, please forgive me. I will do my best to get in touch with them and I know they will respond because our area A.D.'s are an awesome bunch of folks that do so much behind the scenes for student/athletes.

Today's athletic directors include Laurie Thompson (Teutopolis) and Blake Doehring (South Central).

LAURIE THOMPSON (TEUTOPOLIS)

1. Canceling games, officials, communicating with the media. Talked to our coaches about what was expected from them and any guidelines to follow. They had the tough task of communicating the closure to their athletes and making a plan for them.  

2. No, I was hoping for March 31 and then I was really hoping for April 14 (right after Easter break). Still hopeful for May 1 with the understanding the health and safety of our students is the number one priority. 

3. The unknown. I feel extremely bad for the students, athletes, coaches, and everyone involved. Which is everyone in our community, state, and nation.  My heart goes out to our seniors. It is extremely difficult thinking about them missing out on their final season as a Wooden Shoe.

4. I am still doing AD work and since I also teach I am doing remote learning with my Biology Students. I am staying busy.  I actually have to cook since I am at home so much. 

5. Try to stay positive and know that many people are supporting them. We have coaches and teachers that miss them and would do anything to help them. We have to remember our health and safety must come first and we need to follow the guidelines. As a coach, I try to prepare my players for the game of basketball but also for life outside of basketball. We talk about adversity and how to find ways to overcome it. Mental toughness is a necessity right now and we will get through this together. Lean on your family and community. Many times you can use adversity to find positives. Work on your skill, try a new skill, enjoy your extra time with your family, and take nothing for granted. Stay in shape mentally and physically and I hope to see all of you very soon.

BLAKE DOEHRING (SOUTH CENTRAL)

1. As a courtesy to other schools and umpires, I started reaching out immediately to let them know we were cancelled.

2. At first, I thought it would just be the two weeks. Then, you start reading and watching the news and now, I am not surprised that it has continued this long. I hope we are able to go back in May to return to some normalcy and our kids get to play some of their spring season, but it is not looking promising. 

3. The hardest part is thinking about our seniors who have put in so much time and effort, and they are missing out on their senior spring season. Unfortunately, it is out of our control, and I feel for those kids who have put in so much time and effort with their teams and coaches. Ultimately, I want our kids to stay safe/healthy, but I do feel for those kids that want to get back out there and play. We are supposed to host the regional for baseball and softball, and our teams had high expectations this spring. It would be awesome if we are able to return to playing to watch them compete on their home fields again and potentially win some hardware with their teammates that they have put so much time in with. 

4. I have been spending time on school and class work. From the AD side of things, I have started to get things out for the 21/22 and 22/23 seasons. From a personal side, I have done my best to be a first grade teacher to our seven-year-old twin boys. Luckily, my wife is a kindergarten teacher at South Central Elementary and that helps a lot. We have been playing outside a lot and soaking up quality time with them. 
 
5. Nothing in life is guaranteed. We cannot change things out of our control. Even though these are unprecedented times and athletics mean a lot to them and everyone, it is important we all do our part to flatten this out and hopefully return and get to play a portion of their spring season.