LYNN — Lynn student-athletes who play winter sports were given some hope for a possible season this year, as the Lynn School Committee athletic subcommittee expressed its support of finding a way to play winter sports this year during a virtual meeting Thursday evening.
While the athletic subcommittee — which includes Chairman John Ford Jr., Jared Nicholson and Brian Castellanos — didn’t hold any formal vote to move things forward at this time, it plans to explore how to safely have a winter season. School Committee Chairman and Lynn Mayor Thomas McGee, Lynn Superintendent Patrick Tutwiler and School Committee members Lorraine Gately, Donna Coppola and Michael Satterwhite were also at the meeting.
“If there’s a way we can have sports safely, we owe it to these students to find a way to do it,” said Nicholson. “It appears that the EEA (Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs) feels that there is a way we can do that. You can’t recreate the athletic experience remotely, otherwise we would. If it’s safe enough for other kids to do it, then we need to find a way to make it safe for us to do.”
Castellanos, who was an athlete at English, also advocated on behalf of the student-athletes.
“My freshman year of high school, I experienced a series of traumas that would change my life forever,” said Castellanos. “Luckily, by God’s grace, I had the game of football to cope with my mental health struggles. It was my coaches at Lynn English that instilled in me the courage to fight through adversity and overcome my struggles. We need to find a way to support our athletes mentally and physically.”
Satterwhite echoed similar sentiments.
“I believe that sports are a key component of school unity, and they bring our students together,” said Satterwhite. “Sports bring a sense of togetherness with the school, so it’s going to have an impact on kids when they’re not able to play. The sooner we’re able to get these things going, the better and I’m fully in support of it.”
McGee expressed his support and concern for student-athletes, but he also reminded the meeting attendees that COVID-19 cases in Lynn are continuing to rise.
“We need to understand that the tough decisions we’re making and we’re trying to make are all to try and keep people safe,” said McGee. “These numbers are exploding and they’re really impacting our ability to return to normal. I don’t agree with what’s been said, but I don’t think we’re ready at this point to say where we’re going to go.”
The athletic directors of English and Classical — Dick Newton and Bill Devin, respectively — also spoke at the virtual meeting about potential scenarios that would allow Lynn student-athletes to play. Some of the scenarios included playing all road games — similar to what St. Mary’s did during this fall season — and pushing the start of the season until after Jan. 1 — which would be in line with Lynn’s plan to start bringing students back into classrooms after the new year.
“Our kids are just looking for an opportunity,” said Devin, whose son, Matt, is a senior hockey captain for the Lynn Jets. “We need to think outside the box. Kids are losing interest and they need something to do. My son asks me every day if he’s going to be able to play hockey, and I don’t have an answer for him, but I tell him I hope so.”
“Kids have been playing their sports all summer and fall, and they’re going to continue playing them with or without us,” said Newton. “I believe the safest place for these kids to play these sports is with us. It’s not like it was in the fall, when ‘red’ districts were automatically excluded from playing, and I’d like to see us take advantage of that and make an effort to get kids out there.”
While no concrete actions have been taken at this time, the School Committee and the athletic subcommittee agreed to continue to monitor the winter sports situation and work on ways to safely allow students to return to play.
Mike Alongi can be reached at [email protected].