Back in March Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker declared that schools would be closed for the time being and students would learn from home. The postponement also meant that there were also be no spring sports for high schools throughout the state. While athletes all around the Commonwealth of Massachusetts held out for hope that they would eventually get back onto their respective fields Governor Baker blew up their hopes when he cancelled the remainder of the school year, which in all purposes shut down the spring sports seasons. 

 “That certainly was a tough way to end a lot of high school careers, especially so abruptly,” Holliston Athletic Director Matt Baker said. “Three or four days before the season was to open, it gets postponed and eventually cancelled – that’s a gut punch to the kids and the coaches. Not being able to have that final opportunity to put on that Holliston uniform one last time really hurts.”

As the 2020 spring season approached, Baker was optimistic that the Panthers were set forth to having numerous teams with successful years. At the time of the postponement, the Holliston wrestlers were just finishing up their season in the state tournament and the spring teams were ramping up for the upcoming year. 

 “How ironic is it that we had a really nice winter, and the kids were able to get outside earlier than in the past and prepare for the season and then find out it was taken away from them so quickly,” the Holliston AD said. “I was looking to build upon the success that we had last year.  Both of our tennis teams and lacrosse teams were coming off tournament appearances, while the baseball and softball teams were returning a number of players and the track team also had a lot of success last year, including the boys league MVP in Carter Mikkelsen, who was looking to set more records and make history for himself.”

Unfortunately, no athletes got to race toward glory this past spring and there will be no records to be broken. Holliston athletes will lose out on an entire season, one that they will never get back. While not only spring athletes, Holliston has 24 students that will be moving onto play collegiate sports, but the spring athletes missed out on their final opportunity to don the Panther uniform. 

While graduating seniors moved on, knowing where they are going, last year’s junior class, now seniors, really paid the price with the cancellation of the season.  

“Having no spring season in addition to no summer leagues, it leaves these kids with a full year of missed opportunity,” Baker said. “Kids are going to have to be advocates for themselves more than ever before if they’re hoping to get into college. It all started with the seniors losing out on their final season, and it trickled down to all the underclassmen.”

Not only have the athletes taken a back seat to the Coronavirus, but the coaches have, too, as they were working long before COVID-19 hit.

“The coaches had put in so much into the spring season and then this all happens,” the AD said. “All of our spring coaches were overly excited about the upcoming season, especially since we had such a warm winter and the fields were ready by March 16, the earliest they’ve ever been.”

With the spring season being cancelled Baker and all the other Athletic Directors in the state are now in the know how if the fall season is postponed or cancelled all together. Right now, everyone is scheduling as if the fall season is going forward like it normally would until told otherwise.

As everyone hopes for the best for the upcoming season, Baker is hoping that the town of Holliston can get back to some sort of normalcy and have sporting events to got to and take their minds off the world issues.