COVID-19 and Western Massachusetts Sports

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STAFF PHOTO/KEVIN GUTTING

Holyoke senior running back William Dumoulin, right, reaches the 7-yard line before being forced out by Westfield junior Andrew Scott (3) in the first half of the Purple Knights’ 26-7 win over the visiting Bombers on Friday, April 9, 2021, in Holyoke.

Conrad Broderick, Digital Editor
June 15, 2021

Professional sports teams worldwide have cancelled or delayed their seasons due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Schools all throughout Massachusetts had cancelled spring and summer sports seasons due to the severity of the virus.

After a very boring summer and no sports to play, school finally opened and tryouts for fall sports began. Unfortunately, due to recent up-ticks of COVID-19, towns and cities in Massachusetts (Holyoke, Chicopee, Springfield, etc.) have turned into red zones meaning that COVID-19 cases have risen in that specific town.

These cities have made the difficult decision to cancel fall sports mid-season. This was very unfortunate and a lot of athletes were very upset with sports finishing early. Despite this news, there is still hope for the winter sports season. If some towns can lower the amount of cases and follow all safety regulations, we might be able to have a proper winter sports season.