After weeks of COVID-19 regulations, some sports are finally seeing the fruits of their labors begin to pay off and as they can begin competition, while others will have to remain on the sidelines.

On Sept. 9, St. Louis County Executive Sam Page released updated news about the fall sports 2020 season. These changes include multiple layers for various sports depending on their level of contact and ages of players.

The new orders go into effect Friday, Sept. 11. Activities are now divided into three categories: low contact, moderate contact and high contact.

Low contact sports and activities include marching band, boys and girls cross country, girls golf, girls tennis and boys swimming and diving. These five will still follow the guidelines they were given at the beginning of the season, but will now also be allowed compete in games/competitions within the St. Louis region. There will still be restrictions, the most notable of which is no spectators, but teams will still move on with their season as planned. 

As for moderate contact, the activities in this category include boys soccer, field hockey, softball, volleyball, cheerleading and Escadrille. They will be advancing to Phase 3, which means they can hold intrasquad scrimmages, but can’t compete against other teams. 

The final category, high contact, includes football. This group is still in Phase 2, which means they must practice in groups smaller than 20 people, can not hold scrimmages, games or tournaments.

Activities Director Jonathan Sumner is hopeful about the fall sports announcement and is eager to hear more good news. 

“I am happy that some of our student-athletes will have the opportunity to compete, which will give them the opportunity to do what they love,” Sumner said. 

Although the seasons are not canceled for the moderate and high contact categories, there is a possibility for those to be moved to a spring schedule format. The Missouri State High School Activities Association (MSHSAA) is requiring schools to make a decision about that transition in the week of Sept. 14.  MSHSAA said the alternate fall season would run from March 12 through May 1.

As of right now, Lafayette has elected to not move the sports season back to this alternative date and proceed with the fall sports season during the time it would usually be played.

MSHSAA spokesperson Jason West said in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch in August that the plan in Missouri is to play a postseason for both the traditional and alternate fall seasons, which means there is a possibility of a fall state champion, an alternate fall state champion.

“I am hopeful [this decision] will give student-athletes in the moderate and high contact sports some more hope,” Sumner said. “I would love nothing more than our kids to have the ability to compete this fall.”

Editor’s Note: This story was updated as of Sept. 12. For more up-to-date information on the fall sports and activities standings, visit the Rockwood or Lafayette websites, and stay connected to the Lancer Feed.