Leading off today: I made a short trip to the Section 5 Class A track meet on Friday with a couple of goals in mind — to catch up with a couple of coaches I hadn't seen in awhile and to get a look at Tomarris Bell, easily one of the most talented athletes to compete in the Rochester area in the last decade.
I did meet up with most of the coaches I had hoped to see, but I never set eyes on Bell. It turns out the McQuaid junior competed only in the long jump, then left the meet to attend his junior prom. Naturally, that triggered a discussion on the Syracuse.com forums. As is often the case there, the discussion deteriorated quickly into the sort of inane banter that knocks points off your IQ just by reading it.
But it was a reminder that 'tis the season for the dreaded scheduling conflict issue. I mentioned in Sunday's blog the case of a Chapel Field track athlete being kicked off the team because she missed a meet to attend an Empire State Games tryout, and then The Journal News came through this morning with a story pegged to the "prom problem."
For the second straight year, Clarkstown North had a sectional softball game scheduled in Westchester County on the same day as the prom. Put into an either/or situation, four seniors opted for the prom. A year ago, Yorktown's boys lacrosse team managed to hang on to all but one senior for its state semifinal on Long Island despite a conflict with the prom.
After seeing conflicts in several sports last spring, Yorktown officials moved proms to after the athletic seasons are finished. That's one solution. Another is to move the date of the dance up, but late April and early May evenings can be a bit chilly.
More important, though, is that school districts have consistent policies for dealing with athletes who have to make a choice. Unlike spring break, in which numerous athletes miss practices and games in order to go on family trips, the prom is typically a school-approved and supervised event. Under those circumstances, I'd hate to see athletes punished if they opt for the prom, even if it ends up costing their team.
More forum fodder: The gentleman who posts on the Syracuse.com high school forums under the name "Section2" emailed me today to let me know it appears he's been banned from the board.
What a joke. "Section2" has been one of the best sources of information and has started many fascinating threads on that board and contributed to numerous others.
