Northern Virginia Independent Schools Suffer from COVID-19 Impact

By Tatumn Vaught

WOODSTOCK, Vir.- COVID-19 has no doubt rocked the world of sports in 2020. Professionally, the NBA was suspended, the NFL draft has been moved online, and a few athletes were personally infected by this global disease. On a collegiate level, basketball and baseball seasons were suspended, other sports postponed, and rosters will be affected for years to come. While we hear new stories every day about how this pandemic has effected athletes and teams everywhere, there are still thousands of stories yet to be told.

High school sports are no exception to this global phenomenon that everyone’s having to fight through. In northern Virginia, Massanutten Military Academy, an independent military boarding school located in Woodstock, VA, is one of many schools that’s being affected by COVID-19. The colonels are a VISAA Division 3 school that typically has a winning record and high rank in the division tournament each year. This year, the team’s season had to not only be cut short due to the pandemic, but seniors who were being recruited by colleges are now at odds with their eligibility and offers.

Athletic Director of MMA, Mike Costello, discussed how he is reminiscing on the positives this season while everything is so challenging.

“On a personal note, I surpassed 120 varsity basketball wins at MMA this winter and it pushed my career between 215-220,” Costello said. “I had a young experienced team and a stacked schedule so I did a lot of coaching and teaching into the system.”

Costello has been coaching for 29 years and explained how he’s never had to experience something like this before. He’s previously been the head of the Delaney Athletic Conference for independent schools, heading the division’s basketball tournament each year. As a much-anticipated event that draws a large crowd every year, the DAC tournament and other high school athletic tournaments have had to suspend these games due to COVID-19. This is an extreme loss of revenue, for the conference, since it’s one of the only profitable events the league holds each year.

Not only is the conference taking a hit as a whole, but the players are struggling to make decisions about their recruiting.

"This extra year of eligibility is going to rock high schools, colleges and the pro leagues everywhere. I know it was the right move for the athletes because they deserve their shot, but it's definitely going to change a lot of things," Michael King, previous Dunbar baseball player in Lexington, Kentucky said.

Costello said he had a player from Australia who scored 40 points in a number of games who had to be sent home due to the pandemic, which eliminated him from the recruiter’s eyes for the remainder of the season. This is just one example, but so many young athletes are having to make big decisions due to this pandemic.

While a tragic circumstance, hopefully, sympathy and patience will play a large role in working these issues out. While this virus is projecting to reach its peak in several places around the United States in the near future, its impact will remain for a year or longer for these leagues and athletes on all levels.