Better late than never as they say.
Prep softball was left in a huge lurch when the Georgia High School Association and the State of Georgia called off spring sports back in April due to the coronavirus. Typically, softball programs, as per GHSA regulations, hold tryouts in the final week of the school year for the upcoming season.
But with the outbreak of COVID-19, softball programs were put in perpetuity.
On Monday, however, softball programs will finally get their 2020 seasons underway conducting official tryouts. The athletes were allowed to condition for two weeks starting on June 8 and broke out equipment two weeks ago.
“When they called things off (back in April) there was a lot of uncertainty about when, or even if, we would get back,” said Banks County coach Kelby Cronic. “When they started conditioning they told us (Monday) would probably be the day but I guess with all that’s been going on you still wondered. It’s great to be able to get out and do normal practices.”
The Lady Leopards are coming off their best season in program history after capturing the Class 2A state title, their first-ever, in 2019 with a 6-1 win over Bremen in the championship game. Which made May’s tryout session all the more critical to Cronic since they were having to replace seven seniors and starters from the title team. Their first game is set for Aug. 10 at home against East Hall in just over a month.
“We have a lot of positions to fill so this will be a crucial week for us,” Chronic said. “In May we would get five days to set a roster so that’s the approach we’re going to take. I think most programs will probably follow that.
“But we’re just grateful to be able to get out here and begin the season. Hopefully everything will get back to normal and we’ll start on time.”
East Hall coach Anuel Burce had much the same feelings as Cronic after having virtually no contact with his team for nine months.
“That was tough because all you could really do was virtual meetings and hope they were following the things at home we wanted them to do,” Burce said. “We finally all got together for conditioning a few weeks ago but now to be able to get outside and do real game stuff will be fun.
“This first week we’ll be treating things like May practice and tryouts. I think one month should be enough time to get ready.”
The Lady Vikings also are coming off their best season after advancing to the Elite 8 in Columbus in Class 3A in 2019. Now they will be making a jump into Class 4A and the newly constructed Region 8-4A. They open the season on Aug. 6 against Cherokee Bluff.
