NCHSAA extends fall seasons

The North Carolina High School Athletic Association announced Wednesday that fall sports season will be extended due to Hurricane Helene which struck the western portion of the state earlier this month.

In a statemen, they said, “These discussions were necessitated by the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene in western North Carolina.”

Furthermore, that impacts the postseason schedule as well, as the conclusion of fall sports was set back in most cases. Many of the changes are to the season reporting deadlines, which allow make-up games to take place. There are still limits on practices and total number of games in a week, though.

“Changes to the fall calendar are difficult as well as complex but necessary,” said NCHSAA President Dr. Stephen Gainey and NCHSAA Commissioner Que Tucker in a joint statement. “Keeping our student-athletes safe as we try to minimize risk of injury was central to any decisions made. We commend the work of the NCHSAA staff in its research, the Board of Directors in making time to consider these changes and the willingness of our host partners to accommodate any changes and make their venues available.”

The new schedules are outlined in the attached fact box.