California Department of Public Health updated its guidelines for outdoor and indoor youth and recreational adult sports as of  February 23,  2021.

Tennis, golf, track and field and cross country are able to practice and are currently competing. Football, soccer, lacrosse, baseball and softball will be permitted to practice once the COVID-19 rate drops to 14. Basketball and volleyball are currently on the lookout for outdoor practices as indoor gyms are off-limits at this time.

The CDPH guidelines are split into three parts: low-contact sports, moderate-contact sports and high-contact sports, with each section having different guidelines depending on the level of risk of contracting the virus.

Although the sports themselves haven’t changed since the outbreak, athletes have felt a challenge in forming a team bond.

“I haven’t played with most of the girls on my team this year, so I didn’t get to know them as well as if we actually had a season. It did impact our team’s bond for those of us who haven’t played with each other before, but just because we only had a few practices in person,” sophomore and volleyball player Hanna Chizzo said.

Due to the decrease in COVID-19 cases in Ventura County, many high school sports teams that are in the low-contact sports level are starting to schedule games.  As of February 23, 2021, Oak Park High School has allowed golf, tennis, track and field and cross country to meet and practice together following the social distancing guidelines.

Practices are restricted to minimal or no contact. The protocols put in place have proved successful so far according to Athletic Director Tim Chevalier.

“Our coaches and athletes want to compete and I am proud of them for following the protocols and staying safe. We have had no athlete-to-athlete spread of COVID-19,“ Chevalier said.

While there were some concerns that due to COVID many students and returning athletes will not join the sports teams, this is not the case for a few high schools in Ventura County.

“In general, we have a strong demand for athletic participation at OPHS. Approximately 60% of OPHS students play at least one sport. Demand during the pandemic has remained high, and many sports are seeing very large numbers of athletes who want to participate. Overall, we have about the same number of athletes wanting to participate now as in the past,” Chevalier said.