High School Sports Will Return To Montgomery County

SILVER SPRING, MD — After nearly a year on the sidelines, high school athletics will be returning to Montgomery County.

The jurisdiction's public school system said in a release Friday that the fall sports season will begin on Feb. 27 and end on April 17.

Fall sports include bocce, cross country, cheerleading, field hockey, football, golf, soccer, pompons, and girls' volleyball.

Competitions can begin on March 19.

Participation is optional for coaches and student-athletes — and will be school- and team-specific, depending on the selection of coaches and the interest of student-athletes, according to MCPS.

All students can participate in the fall sports season, even if they're only taking online classes when schools reopen on March 1.

Everyone must be registered through ParentVue by Feb. 22. Once registration is complete, coaches will confirm program offerings and begin grouping students, according to MCPS.

Schools Split Into Divisions

In an effort to minimize students' exposure to others, schools have been split into three divisions based on geography — and each division has been divided into two "pods."

Teams will play all opponents in their pod, then face off against other pod teams in their division, if needed to fill out a schedule.

Spectators and Face Coverings

Spectators will not be allowed during the fall season.

Per Montgomery County health guidelines, student-athletes can remove their mask or face covering whenever they are engaged in vigorous activity.

Students and coaches must wear face coverings at all other times.

In the Event of a Positive COVID-19 Case

Here's what to expect if a student or coach tests positive for COVID-19, per MCPS documents:

• The infected individual, and anyone who had direct contact with them, will be excluded from the activity and advised of the CDC guidelines for isolation
• All impacted students and coaches will be notified in writing as soon as possible
• A contact tracing investigation will be launched
• Teams that may have been exposed "will be quarantined and shut down until granted clearance by MCPS, through collaboration with DHHS"
• If a positive case can be directly traced to a sport or a competition in a particular sport, "that sport will be temporarily suspended systemwide, to allow for the COVID-19 Task Force to review and/or modify protocols"
• An infected student must complete and submit a clearance form prior to returning to competition

Click here for more information about the fall high school sports season.