Despite Lafayette being all virtual to kick off the new school year, fall sports have continued to go on. However, they’ve moved on with new guidelines in order to keep athletes and coaches safe.

As of right now, Lafayette is in phase two. The phase system has been set up by the St. Louis County Task-Force in order to delegate how youth sports teams will progress throughout the season. While a slow process, many Lafayette coaches, athletes and administrators are looking forward to moving up in the phases.

Activities Director Jonathan Sumner said, “The current plan is to follow all the guidelines set by the county. I am hopeful we will move forward this month and would love nothing more than our kids to have the ability to compete this fall.”

In phase two, there are still no games or scrimmages allowed for any team. Scrimmages between teams won’t begin until phase three, and games with other teams won’t begin until phase four. With other restrictions, both for practices and workouts, no more than groups of 20 athletes can be together at one time.

For the foreseeable future, there have been no games planned, and spectators are not allowed to watch the teams practice.

“This is all still being discussed, and a lot of it will be based on the county recommendations. Once we have firm information on that we will devise a plan to accommodate those guidelines [where fans can watch games],” Sumner said.

The social distancing guidelines have remained the same since the beginning of the season. Teams are still required to wear masks before and after practices, when not doing vigorous physical activity and coaches must wear them at all times.

Players are filling out a COVID-19 self-report form every day they walk on campus to register the people on school property. This will help with contract tracing, just in case a team needs to be isolated and quarantined.

Despite the recent changes, athletes are still having a positive attitude for the season.

Ansley Hails is a junior who plays field hockey. She and her team have been working in camps over the summer and since the return to sports in order to make a safe return to the fall sport.

“Everyone in the program wears masks when they aren’t playing, we’re also spread out over the field to do drills in order to practice social distancing,” Hails said. “We have our own waters and equipment to prevent everyone from touching the same things.”

Hails along with the rest of her team still continue to hope for a normal season; however, they are making the most of what they have.

“While we’re all cautious, our team dynamic is still super fun. We are all friends so it’s really cool to be able to play with everyone again,” she said. “The season is just so different, and so much is still unknown. Getting to play with them after isolation and other sports getting shut down last year has made me more appreciative of the opportunity I have to play with them, and it’s something I look forward to every day.”

Editors Note: This story was updated as of Sept. 5, 2020. For more information about fall sports and activities, visit the Rockwood or Lafayette website, and stay updated with the latest from the Lancer Feed.