Spectators limited at high school sporting events

As school sports ramp up this week, all of them altered in some way by the pandemic, leagues have announced very specific attendance and safety protocols for spectators. There are, however, numerous ways to watch sports online.

Stadiums normally full of students, parents and alumni will be strictly limited; there is a 200 person maximum attendance at all sporting events, including football.

“Football games are very close to the 200 limit,” said Montesano Athletic Director Tim Trimble. That 200 person limit includes players, coaches, officials, and spectators.

In football, the 200 person limit will be adhered to, with some differences between some schools as to who may have guests. When the Hoquiam Grizzlies play at Olympic Stadium, each uniformed senior in the football, color guard, cheer or band roster will be allowed two guests per home game. In Montesano and Aberdeen, the guidelines state “two guests per senior player.” All three will not allow any visiting team fans. There will be no concessions, but restrooms will be available.

Cross country, boys tennis and boys golf at all three schools will allow for home and away fans, sticking again to the 200 person maximum that includes fans, coaches and players.

The rules for girls soccer and volleyball vary a little between schools. Evergreen 2A Aberdeen will allow visiting and home uniformed players to have two guests each. Evergreen 1A schools Hoquiam and Montesano will be sticking to the two guests per uniformed home player, but no guests for visiting players.

Each school’s athletic director will review its plans weekly and make adjustments if they are deemed necessary. Best to check with each district’s website or Facebook page for the latest, listed below.

Watching online

Since the majority of people won’t be able to watch their alma maters play sports live, schools have worked to provide ways fans can watch their favorite schools online.

For example, the City of Hoquiam paired with the school district to wire Olympic Stadium to broadcast games.

“That’s all installed and ready to go,” said Hoquiam Mayor Ben Winkelman. “You can pay to access Olympic Stadium games.”

Below is a list of area schools and how to watch online. There are fees attached to these services, through the NFHS Network, a national high school sports streaming network. An annual NFHS Network pass is $69.99, monthly passes at $10.99, billed monthly. Go to the following links for more details and to sign up.

Aberdeen Bobcats

Website: https://ahsbobcats.com/

Live Streaming: https://www.nfhsnetwork.com/schools/aberdeen-high-school-aberdeen-wa

Twitter: @WeAre_Aberdeen

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AberdeenSchoolDistrict5

Hoquiam Grizzlies

Website: https://hoquiamgrizzlies.com/

Live Streaming: https://www.nfhsnetwork.com/schools/hoquiam-high-school-hoquiam-wa

Twitter: @HoquiamA

Montesano Bulldogs

Website: https://montesanoathletics.org/

Live Streaming: https://www.nfhsnetwork.com/schools/montesano-juniorsenior-high-school-montesano-wa