| Another Confusing Cody Column |
I THOUGHT THIS WAS
OVER WITH!!!
OVER WITH!!!
Still, more of the same continues to haunt the 2011 spring
sports season ...
sports season ...
Remember a couple of weeks ago, when we started to call this spring the worst
one in recent memory. Spring was only halfway over. There was still the rest of
Spring, and this is it.
We're seeing major flooding along the Mississippi Delta, and tornadoes rip through
the Midwest like never before. Our thoughts and prayers are out to not only those
in Joplin, MO but also all those throughout the nation whose lives took a hit
because of severe weather this spring.
About a month ago I wrote about how this rain was battering the area's high school
sports scene ... well in all cases except for high school badminton. If rescheduling
games then were a pain in the rear, any postponement from this day on is going to
feel worse.
We're in the middle of the spring sports postseason, where series structure is by
the week and delays are just as bad as any Chicago expressway during rush hour.
Games can't be put off for an open date a month from now. No tweaking non-
conference games in order to accommodate conference or division games. These
postseason games have to be made up as soon as possible. All but one of our
area's hardball games scheduled for Wednesday has been pushed to today. The
lone exception being Newark softball's 10-0 win over Arlington Heights Christian
Liberty in the Class 1A Sectional semifinal at Serena yesterday.
Newark Softball is one of many teams to feel the effects of Mother Nature this
season. They once had eight contests in a row canceled from April 15 to April 30
(seven due to weather, one due to an opponent's academic commitment). In
addition, five other games were wiped out. The team Newark beat to get to the
Sectional, Serena, only played 21 games all year. Regardless of the number of
games played, the Lady Norsemen are in the Sectional final.
That Sectional final, along with most others in small school hardball, is scheduled
for Saturday afternoon at 11:00 in the afternoon. If it rains, oh boy!
Here's hoping that an inquiry into the IHSA Terms and Conditions doesn't happen.
According to Section VIII, sub-section G, paragraph five: “In the event that the
Sectional game(s) cannot be completed, the highest seeded team remaining shall
advance to the Supersectional.”
How will it feel to have your season end because of an IHSA rule such as this? Say
your team is seeded lower than your opponent, and your team is on a real hot
streak as of late. Ouch!
However if a supersectional game cannot be completed, there still needs to be a
team that advances to the State Finals. This is done by one flip of the coin.
The coin flip is spelled out in Section VII, sub-section I, paragraph four: “In the
event that the Super-sectional game cannot be completed, one coin toss will
determine which team advances to the state tournament.”
Which is worse? Having your season end in sectionals because your team is the
lowest seed? Or being the best team in the state and losing your State Final trip
due to a coin flip?
In Girls Soccer (Terms and Conditions Section VIII, sub-section A, paragraph 5), if
Class 1A sectional final games or Class 2A and 3A supersectional games are
delayed while tied, the remaining portion of the game has to be made up by the
Thursday night prior to the State Semifinals. If it cannot, a coin flip determines the
advancee to the State Finals. After that, there are no official rules regarding a
delayed and tied game during the State Finals.
We've come close to coin flips before. I nearly had to write about one. In 2004, the
Rock Falls Baseball team had a supersectional date with Woodstock Marian put on
hold for a couple of days before playing on a Wednesday at Marinelli Field in
Rockford. If that game was rained out, a coin flip would have decided both teams'
fate.
The “Gerald Ford” possibility exists: A team can advance to the State Finals
without having played in a sectional final game and a supersectional game. Not
sure if a one-week layoff going into the State semifinal is a good thing.
Then when weather dogs the baseball and softball State Finals, there are rules in
place to clear up any delays. This is Section VIII, sub-section J – “Guidelines for
Play at the State Tournament in Case of Bad Weather”:
“1) The first priority is to crown a champion. 2) If the consolation game cannot be
played, a tie will be awarded to both teams. 3) If the tournament can only be
played on one day due to bad weather, then five inning games will be played and
warm up time will be determined by the state final manager and the IHSA. 4) In the
event of delays, the Championship game and the Consolation games may be
reversed.”
The above rules were definitely in place last year, at the Class 2A Baseball and 4A
Softball state final events.
An adjoining field was called upon for the 4A State Softball consolation game
between Moline and Elk Grove, when it was clear that the normal schedule
wouldn't happen due to rain. EastSide Center's lone tarp equipment was used for
the main field, while the adjoining field turned muddy. According to paragraph one,
the state championship game between Orland Park Sandburg and Palatine Fremd
had to be played.
So according to paragraph two, both Moline and Elk Grove were awarded the third-
place trophy. The weather was going to get worse after the championship game,
so there was no chance of the consolation game being played.
A potential tie would have happened in the Class 2A Baseball consolation game
last year between IVC and Elmhurst Immaculate Conception. Both teams were tied
when a delay occurred in the fifth inning. Still needing to play the 2A title game, it
was decided that the game would end at the seventh inning regardless of score.
That tie didn't happen. Through the efforts of Derek Sprout and Dan Semtener,
the Grey Ghosts scored runs in the fifth inning and held on to beat Immaculate
Conception.
Only two other times in IHSA history has a baseball or softball game been cut short
with both teams being given an equal award.
In the 2001 Class AA consolation softball game, Glenbard North and Belleville
West went to a 0-0 draw after 10 innings. The title game still needed to be played,
and the decision was to halt the consolation game in order to crown a Class AA
state champion. Both Glenbard North and Belleville West were given third-place
honors.
The idea of moving contests to other EastSide diamonds didn't take place until the
2004 Class A State Finals, where Rock Falls and Warrensburg-Latham tangled for
a 20-inning semifinal game. The consolation game between Rock Falls and
Nashville took place on an adjoining diamond, while at the same time the
championship game between Warrensburg-Latham and Beecher took place on the
main diamond.
In the 2006 Class AA Baseball series, the Minooka-O'Fallon consolation game was
canceled because of severe weather. Unable to start the game, and having the
Class AA championship game still left to play, the IHSA wound up giving both
Minooka and O'Fallon third place trophies.
In the cases of these three unique games, the possibility of delaying the
championship game into the following week was never discussed. Technically, the
sport season ends on the week of the large school State Tournament.
Some coaches wish such extensions could happen.
“No, the option of coming back next week to play was never discussed,” Moline
softball coach Mark Gerlach told NISB's Bill Lidinsky after last year's washout. “We
would have done whatever it took to play another game. I think Elk Grove really
wanted to go home. But it’s hard when you’re hanging around all day and not
getting to play so I can understand that as well. But I honestly believe our girls
would have sat there all night if they knew they were going to play another game.
“Playing that third place game is important. Obviously it’s not as important as the
championship game. But you work all year and you get to state to play two games.
When you don’t, like we experienced, it’s disappointing.”
The IHSA is currently debating whether to hold the State Bass Fishing Meet in the
summer months, after current seniors have graduated.
Why can't the same be done with the rest of the spring sports, or fall sports, when
there is a delay in them? Tennis has the best back-up plan, having moved most of
the 2009 Girls State Final matches indoors. Track and field, and cross country
have none. Football plays in the rain unless there is lightning.
During the 2001-02 Class A and AA IHSA Boys Golf State Meets, the second day
was called off entirely due to severe weather. The decision was made to award
State finishes based on the only day of play. The result was a six-way tie for the
Class A individual championship. Erie's Josh Hart was one of the state champions
that year.
Golf regionals and sectionals can be pushed back, but there is currently no
statement in the Terms and Conditions regarding a backlog into the State Meet.
There is also no statement regarding severe weather on both days of a State Golf
Meet.
If the weather keeps up like this, these are spur-of-the-moment decisions to be
made by the IHSA. Only then are they installed into their respective rule books.
It's best knowing the worst-case scenarios beforehand. Enjoy having the
knowledge of coin flips and seedings at your disposal in a severe weather situation.
Cody Cutter is the Publisher of Northern Illinois Sports Beat. He can be reached at
Northernillinoissportsbeat (at) yahoo (dot) com. --- Talk about what's written on
our Message Boards!
one in recent memory. Spring was only halfway over. There was still the rest of
Spring, and this is it.
We're seeing major flooding along the Mississippi Delta, and tornadoes rip through
the Midwest like never before. Our thoughts and prayers are out to not only those
in Joplin, MO but also all those throughout the nation whose lives took a hit
because of severe weather this spring.
About a month ago I wrote about how this rain was battering the area's high school
sports scene ... well in all cases except for high school badminton. If rescheduling
games then were a pain in the rear, any postponement from this day on is going to
feel worse.
We're in the middle of the spring sports postseason, where series structure is by
the week and delays are just as bad as any Chicago expressway during rush hour.
Games can't be put off for an open date a month from now. No tweaking non-
conference games in order to accommodate conference or division games. These
postseason games have to be made up as soon as possible. All but one of our
area's hardball games scheduled for Wednesday has been pushed to today. The
lone exception being Newark softball's 10-0 win over Arlington Heights Christian
Liberty in the Class 1A Sectional semifinal at Serena yesterday.
Newark Softball is one of many teams to feel the effects of Mother Nature this
season. They once had eight contests in a row canceled from April 15 to April 30
(seven due to weather, one due to an opponent's academic commitment). In
addition, five other games were wiped out. The team Newark beat to get to the
Sectional, Serena, only played 21 games all year. Regardless of the number of
games played, the Lady Norsemen are in the Sectional final.
That Sectional final, along with most others in small school hardball, is scheduled
for Saturday afternoon at 11:00 in the afternoon. If it rains, oh boy!
Here's hoping that an inquiry into the IHSA Terms and Conditions doesn't happen.
According to Section VIII, sub-section G, paragraph five: “In the event that the
Sectional game(s) cannot be completed, the highest seeded team remaining shall
advance to the Supersectional.”
How will it feel to have your season end because of an IHSA rule such as this? Say
your team is seeded lower than your opponent, and your team is on a real hot
streak as of late. Ouch!
However if a supersectional game cannot be completed, there still needs to be a
team that advances to the State Finals. This is done by one flip of the coin.
The coin flip is spelled out in Section VII, sub-section I, paragraph four: “In the
event that the Super-sectional game cannot be completed, one coin toss will
determine which team advances to the state tournament.”
Which is worse? Having your season end in sectionals because your team is the
lowest seed? Or being the best team in the state and losing your State Final trip
due to a coin flip?
In Girls Soccer (Terms and Conditions Section VIII, sub-section A, paragraph 5), if
Class 1A sectional final games or Class 2A and 3A supersectional games are
delayed while tied, the remaining portion of the game has to be made up by the
Thursday night prior to the State Semifinals. If it cannot, a coin flip determines the
advancee to the State Finals. After that, there are no official rules regarding a
delayed and tied game during the State Finals.
We've come close to coin flips before. I nearly had to write about one. In 2004, the
Rock Falls Baseball team had a supersectional date with Woodstock Marian put on
hold for a couple of days before playing on a Wednesday at Marinelli Field in
Rockford. If that game was rained out, a coin flip would have decided both teams'
fate.
The “Gerald Ford” possibility exists: A team can advance to the State Finals
without having played in a sectional final game and a supersectional game. Not
sure if a one-week layoff going into the State semifinal is a good thing.
Then when weather dogs the baseball and softball State Finals, there are rules in
place to clear up any delays. This is Section VIII, sub-section J – “Guidelines for
Play at the State Tournament in Case of Bad Weather”:
“1) The first priority is to crown a champion. 2) If the consolation game cannot be
played, a tie will be awarded to both teams. 3) If the tournament can only be
played on one day due to bad weather, then five inning games will be played and
warm up time will be determined by the state final manager and the IHSA. 4) In the
event of delays, the Championship game and the Consolation games may be
reversed.”
The above rules were definitely in place last year, at the Class 2A Baseball and 4A
Softball state final events.
An adjoining field was called upon for the 4A State Softball consolation game
between Moline and Elk Grove, when it was clear that the normal schedule
wouldn't happen due to rain. EastSide Center's lone tarp equipment was used for
the main field, while the adjoining field turned muddy. According to paragraph one,
the state championship game between Orland Park Sandburg and Palatine Fremd
had to be played.
So according to paragraph two, both Moline and Elk Grove were awarded the third-
place trophy. The weather was going to get worse after the championship game,
so there was no chance of the consolation game being played.
A potential tie would have happened in the Class 2A Baseball consolation game
last year between IVC and Elmhurst Immaculate Conception. Both teams were tied
when a delay occurred in the fifth inning. Still needing to play the 2A title game, it
was decided that the game would end at the seventh inning regardless of score.
That tie didn't happen. Through the efforts of Derek Sprout and Dan Semtener,
the Grey Ghosts scored runs in the fifth inning and held on to beat Immaculate
Conception.
Only two other times in IHSA history has a baseball or softball game been cut short
with both teams being given an equal award.
In the 2001 Class AA consolation softball game, Glenbard North and Belleville
West went to a 0-0 draw after 10 innings. The title game still needed to be played,
and the decision was to halt the consolation game in order to crown a Class AA
state champion. Both Glenbard North and Belleville West were given third-place
honors.
The idea of moving contests to other EastSide diamonds didn't take place until the
2004 Class A State Finals, where Rock Falls and Warrensburg-Latham tangled for
a 20-inning semifinal game. The consolation game between Rock Falls and
Nashville took place on an adjoining diamond, while at the same time the
championship game between Warrensburg-Latham and Beecher took place on the
main diamond.
In the 2006 Class AA Baseball series, the Minooka-O'Fallon consolation game was
canceled because of severe weather. Unable to start the game, and having the
Class AA championship game still left to play, the IHSA wound up giving both
Minooka and O'Fallon third place trophies.
In the cases of these three unique games, the possibility of delaying the
championship game into the following week was never discussed. Technically, the
sport season ends on the week of the large school State Tournament.
Some coaches wish such extensions could happen.
“No, the option of coming back next week to play was never discussed,” Moline
softball coach Mark Gerlach told NISB's Bill Lidinsky after last year's washout. “We
would have done whatever it took to play another game. I think Elk Grove really
wanted to go home. But it’s hard when you’re hanging around all day and not
getting to play so I can understand that as well. But I honestly believe our girls
would have sat there all night if they knew they were going to play another game.
“Playing that third place game is important. Obviously it’s not as important as the
championship game. But you work all year and you get to state to play two games.
When you don’t, like we experienced, it’s disappointing.”
The IHSA is currently debating whether to hold the State Bass Fishing Meet in the
summer months, after current seniors have graduated.
Why can't the same be done with the rest of the spring sports, or fall sports, when
there is a delay in them? Tennis has the best back-up plan, having moved most of
the 2009 Girls State Final matches indoors. Track and field, and cross country
have none. Football plays in the rain unless there is lightning.
During the 2001-02 Class A and AA IHSA Boys Golf State Meets, the second day
was called off entirely due to severe weather. The decision was made to award
State finishes based on the only day of play. The result was a six-way tie for the
Class A individual championship. Erie's Josh Hart was one of the state champions
that year.
Golf regionals and sectionals can be pushed back, but there is currently no
statement in the Terms and Conditions regarding a backlog into the State Meet.
There is also no statement regarding severe weather on both days of a State Golf
Meet.
If the weather keeps up like this, these are spur-of-the-moment decisions to be
made by the IHSA. Only then are they installed into their respective rule books.
It's best knowing the worst-case scenarios beforehand. Enjoy having the
knowledge of coin flips and seedings at your disposal in a severe weather situation.
Cody Cutter is the Publisher of Northern Illinois Sports Beat. He can be reached at
Northernillinoissportsbeat (at) yahoo (dot) com. --- Talk about what's written on
our Message Boards!
| Northern Illinois Sports Beat http://www.northernillinoissportsbeat.com |
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