It's going to be a short, strange summer

June 1 was a big day for high school athletes at Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn and schools across Iowa, as it was the first time they could participate in organized activities since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Gov. Kim Reynolds announced on May 20 that Iowa's high school baseball and softball seasons could be held. The Iowa High School Athletic Association and Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union boards then announced that practices could begin on June 1 and games will start on June 15.

That was welcome news to high school athletic director Mark Petersen, but he was not expecting the announcement to come as soon as it did.

"I was surprised," he said. "Everything we had been getting up to that point in time, it was pretty overwhelming that there would be no decision until June 1."

The earlier announcement gave Petersen and other War Eagle Conference athletic directors more time to prepare for the seasons.

"I'm pleased they announced it when they did," Petersen acknowledged. "As a conference it gave us time to do some planning."

The athletic directors had some preliminary discussions about schedules, but felt it made no sense to go any farther until a final announcement was made.

The date for the start of games is nearly three weeks later than normal which meant that changes had to be made to the original league schedule to balance out conference teams' home-and-away games.

Petersen noted that before schedules were reworked, most of H-M-S's games would be played at home. That would be a bonus for the Hawks, but it would have put other schools at a disadvantage.

"Of our 10 games, seven would be at home. That is not right for the rest of the conference," he said.

With the season only running 3-1/2 weeks [June 15-July 8], H-M-S is limiting its schedule to 10 conference games and two non-conference contests. Petersen was especially concerned about baseball, which has a pitch count that limits how many times players can be on the mound. If the Hawks played too many games during the week, it could leave the team without any eligible pitchers.

Finding umpires wasn't much of a problem. With a few adjustments to previously scheduled dates, Petersen has officials lined up for all home games.

"I didn't have anyone who didn't want to do it, so we're good there," he said.

Petersen and the coaches have been communicating to make sure everything is ready for the season. He planned to meet with both teams on Monday to explain procedures and answer questions. Several protocols will be in place to minimize the risk of COVID-19. Petersen feels they will become "second nature" once everyone adjusts to them.

Social distancing is also strongly recommended for fans. However, Petersen said that state officials do not want school staff to become "social distancing police."

"It's up to the people as to what they want to do," he noted.

While admitting it will be a "strange summer," Petersen is happy that the 2020 baseball and softball teams will be able to compete.

"I think it will be good for our kids and the communities in general," he said.