CIF Southern Section extends regular season for…
CIF Southern Section extends regular season for winter sports due to COVID-19 spike
By Dan Albano | dalbano@scng.com | Orange County Register
PUBLISHED: January 12, 2022 at 3:04 p.m. | UPDATED: January 12, 2022 at 4:41 p.m.
Support our high school sports coverage by becoming a digital subscriber. Subscribe now
The CIF Southern Section on Wednesday extended the end of the regular season in basketball, soccer and girls water polo by a few days because of the numerous games postponed by the surge in COVID-19 cases.
In an effort to help schools complete their league seasons, the section pushed the date for the final league games in boys and girls basketball back two days to Sunday, Feb. 6.
The move keeps the section aligned with the CIF State's recent adjustment to allow winter sports teams to play games on Sundays, if needed, because of scheduling issues created by the virus.
The deadline for playoff entries to be submitted to the section is Feb. 6 at 6 p.m.
The last date to play a league soccer or girls water polo match was extended three days to Feb. 6.
"We know the number of games that have been postponed to this point has been an extremely difficult challenge for our member schools to overcome," Southern Section commissioner Rob Wigod stated in a letter to schools.
"By adjusting the end dates for our Southern Section boys/girls basketball, boys/girls soccer and girls water polo, we can provide some additional days at the end of our regular seasons for schools to reschedule postponed games and that is exactly what we are prepared to do."
The release of the playoff pairings will be pushed to Feb. 7 (girls water polo) and Feb. 8 (basketball, soccer) but the championships dates remain mostly the same. The championship weekend for basketball and soccer is Feb. 25-26 and Feb. 19 for girls water polo.
The Southern Section also reminded schools that its calendar is heavily influenced by the dates for the CIF State championships.
Commissioners across the state met online with CIF State executive director Ron Nocetti on Wednesday and decided to keep those dates in place for now but the evaluation remains "fluid" because of COVID-19 concerns, state spokesperson Rebecca Brutlag said.
She said the State CIF could make changes to its championship dates if needed. She added the state office has good working relationships with Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, the scheduled venue for the state basketball finals on March 11-12, and Mechanics Bank Arena in Bakersfield, the site for the state wrestling finals on Feb. 24-26.
The state earlier pushed its SoCal competitive cheer invitational back about a month to Feb. 19.
BOYS WATER POLO TRANSFERS
All-County attacker Ryder Dodd of Huntington Beach and All-SoCal goalie Joey Kent of Servite — both sophomores — have transferred to JSerra. The Lions finished second in the Trinity League last season and lost in the first round of the Open Division playoffs.
National Signing Day, Feb. 2: Share your news, photos with OCVarsity
Ganesha's Iledza Rodriguez voted Southern California Girls Athlete of the Week
Peninsula's Liam Miller voted Southern California Boys Athlete of the Week
OCVarsity Fab 15 for 2022: The top high school football recruits in the West
Foothill girls water polo upsets No. 2 Laguna Beach at Newport Invitational
Dan Albano
High School All Sports
High School Water Polo
Dan Albano | High School sports reporter
Dan Albano has been a high school sports writer at The Orange County Register since 1993. He specializes in football and all the aquatics but covers many different sports. Dan's passion for water sports has earned him the nickname, Aqua Dan, in the newsroom and taken him to multiple U.S. Olympic Swim Trials and many USA water polo events as a reporter. He also writes about high school football recruiting, including The Register's annual FAB 15 teams that list the top high school football players in the Western U.S. before National Signing Day. He compiles the Hot 150 list of football players to watch in Orange County before each season. During football season, he partners with Steve Fryer and Jonathan Khamis on OCVarsity's Gridiron Show and hosts a weekly podcast on Trinity League football. In 2015, Dan received the Bud Dwyer Jr. media award from the Southern California High School Football Coaches Association. He was honored as a Jim Staunton Champion for Character by the CIF-Southern Section in 2017. Dan is a graduate of Cal State Fullerton, where he worked at The Daily Titan as a news reporter, sports reporter, managing editor and opinion editor.
dalbano@scng.com
Follow Dan Albano	@ocvarsityguy
More in High School Sports
Rosters announced for Orange County All-Star Classic football game on Feb. 5
Boys basketball roundup: Mater Dei needs big rally to beat Santa Margarita in Trinity League showdown