What's Happening in Merrick, NY…

After a long absence, the high school athletes of Nassau County, including those of Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District, have returned to practice in their respective low- and moderate-risk winter sports.

Long Island public high schools are preparing to compete in bowling, fencing, gymnastics, track and field, swimming, and diving. However, per Governor Andrew Cuomo’s guidelines, high-risk winter sports such as basketball, competitive cheerleading, hockey, and wrestling are still a “no go”.

Mepham, Kennedy and Calhoun high schools have consolidated their students under the Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District banner for bowling teams and boy’s swimming, while each school is fielding its own boys’ and girls’ track teams. Schedules for Nassau County’s track and field had to be redone when South Huntington’s St. Anthony’s High School let the county know that it could not host meets in its fieldhouse.

The implementation of Plan B: strictly virtual meets for the first few weeks with in-person dual meets, is a possibility in late January and early February.

Banner printing services are often employed to offer congratulations on tournament wins.

The roster for the district’s boy’s swimming and diving is almost half as much as usual. Although Coach Bob Kaefer admitted that the low number of boys signed up is not ideal for the sport or the team, at least it will make social distancing easier. As with the track and field participants, swimmers will most likely compete partly on a virtual basis.