WCHS basketball games suspended until January due to COVID-19

DOUBLE SPRINGS -  A decision was made Wednesday, Dec. 16, to suspend Winston County High School basketball games until the first of the year, due to the rise in COVID-19 cases, school officials said.

“Regardless of any situation, we'll always make decisions to protect our students and our student athletes. That's why this decision was made,” stressed Winston County Schools Superintendent Greg Pendley. “There are some that have (COVID-19) symptoms and because of that, it is just best that we shut it down for a while.”

Basketball games at Double Springs Middle School  already this season have been cancelled or postponed due to team members being in quarantine resulting from COVID-19. This time, if one player tests positive for the contageous virus, that particular sports program will be shut down, Pendley explained.

Even though a positive test may not be official, administrators have received guidance that if one player has loss of taste of smell, a major COVID-19 symptom, that athlete is treated is if they have COVID, for the safety of the student as well as students that may be in contact with them.

Administrators are deciding how the cancellation of WCHS basketball games for the remainder of the semester will affect other teams they play, including county teams, but an official decision had not been made on that by press time.

“I'll have to reach out to our administrators and see where we're at as far as totals and system numbers,” Pendley stated. Plans are to make up as many games as possible, he said.