SDHSAA sets bball postseason alignments and spring COVID guidelines

2-2-21
Brent Nathaniel
Twitter.com/BrentNathaniel
Thanks to Dellas Cole from Brookings Radio

PIERRE, S.D. (Brookings Radio) — The South Dakota High School Activities Association Board of Directors has approved revisions in regional alignments for this year’s basketball post-season at their meeting held Monday.

If a Class A or B region has fewer than four teams, it will be combined with another region. From that group, four teams will advance to the SoDak 16 round.

Executive Director Dan Swartos says regions one through five currently have adequate numbers. If needed, Regions 5 and 6 would go together, as would Regions 7 and 8.

Lakota Tech officials asked that Regions 6 and 7 be combined – Swartos says that wouldn’t be the best solution:

Right now, Region 6 has four teams participating. Region 7 has three, and Region 8 has seven.

COVID guidelines for South Dakota spring sports were also put in place.

Swartos says golf and tennis guidelines don’t change much from the fall season. He says the state currently appears to be in a much better place.

Assistant executive director John Krogstrand says track fans should avoid contact with athletes and team camps. He says guidelines encourage social distancing, especially with field events. Krogstrand says schools have the option to limit event entries, or the number of teams in a meet.

Krogstrand says state track meet planning is underway – he hopes those guidelines will be ready for board consideration in March.