UPDATE: According to WVSSAC Executive Director Bernie Dolan, the Class AAA portion of the state soccer tournament will be played.
The first game between No. 1 George Washington and No. 4 Jefferson is now scheduled for 9:30 a.m., while the 2-3 matchup between Cabell Midland and University will kick off at noon.
WVSSAC, state soccer tournament qualifying teams await West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals response on writ of probation
UPDATE: The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals is the next stop of the legal battle currently holding up the West Virginia state soccer tournaments after the WVSSAC legal team filed a petition for a writ of prohibition. The Beck family, or the respondents, have until 9 a.m. Friday morning to file a written response.
The petition was filed yesterday following the 23rd Circuit Court’s decision to grant Martinsburg girls’ soccer player Emily Beck a restraining order to halt the triple-A portion of the state tournament.
New information will be published as it becomes available.
Class AAA state soccer tournaments postponed after Berkeley County judge grants temporary restraining order against the WVSSAC
MARTINSBURG, W.Va. – After no decision was made Wednesday afternoon about Martinsburg girls’ soccer player Emily Beck’s lawsuit against the West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission, Judge R. Steven Redding decided to grant the student-athlete her temporary restraining order Thursday morning, effectively postponing the Class AAA state soccer tournaments.
Originally reported by the Martinsburg Journal’s Sports Editor Rick Kozlowski, Beck filed the lawsuit in the 23rd Circuit Court on the premise that the West Virginia COVID-19 mapping system and availability for testing have been unfair on a county-to-county basis as well as the subsequent effects they had on high school sports. Beck and her parents, also her legal representation, cited multiple cases around the state of teams who were able to compete in the postseason if they were in a county that was above the proper threshold.
This stemmed from Berkeley County going orange the week of the Region II postseason, effectively keeping Martinsburg, Musselman, Hedgesville and Spring Mills soccer teams from competing against each other in sectionals and, thus, stopping whoever would have won the Section 1 title from vying for the regional title against the Jefferson High boys’ and girls’ teams who are both in their respective state brackets.
Two instances the Becks cited were Doddridge County cross country runners being able to compete at the state meet in Ona despite the county being listed as red – though athletes were tested for the virus – and Wheeling Park’s girls’ soccer program being able to participate in the state tournament despite the infection rate in Ohio County being 47.95 and Berkeley Couty’s being, at the time, 19.30. It is now 21.94. Ohio County’s current infection rate is 51.75 but the county’s orange designation is determined by percent positivity, which is 5.21. To compare, Berkeley’s percent positivity rate is 5.89. Further, according to the map provided by the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources, Doddridge County is currently green and has been since last Thursday per the percent positivity rate. They have been trending yellow per infection rate numbers since last Thursday.
They also claimed that Berkeley County had disproportionate testing availability compared to other counties. According to Kozlowski’s report, WVSSAC lawyer William Wooten rebutted this, stating Berkeley County, “‘had the same opportunity as anybody else’ as far as testing went.”
While Redding has scheduled a follow-up hearing for next Thursday, the postponement affects the University boys’ soccer team who is the No. 3 seed in their bracket. While waiting for a decision Wednesday afternoon, coach Michael Smith said it would “be a shame” if the tournaments were postponed.
“It would be a shame because we bent over backward to help Buckhannon-Upshur in our section,” Smith said. “There have been other sections all over the state trying and, boy, would it be a shame to change the rules now. But it’s out of our hands.”
Senior goalkeeper Timmy Bailey sees it as an opportunity to get more reps in at practice, though, and doesn’t see the ruling as a momentum killer for his team.
“They can do whatever they want, it’s just another week to practice and get better,” Bailey said. “There’s nothing that will slow us down. I think we’re on the right track. If they postpone, it’s whatever, it’s not going to slow us down.”
For now, a new date has not been set for the semifinals, and the tournament will still be held in Beckley. Following the decision, Wooten told Kozlowski he would be filing an appeal with the West Virginia Supreme Court. This story will be updated as details become available.
TWEET @andrewspellman_
