Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, May 9, 1993 TAG: 9305090042
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: E8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BOB TEITLEBAUM STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
The most frequently mentioned concern was finding gymnasium space for practices and games.
Almost all Group A schools have access to only one gym, two at the most. Among Group AA schools, some have more space than others but not enough to run girls' and boys' varsity and junior-varsity programs, middle school boys' and girls' programs, and freshman girls' and boys' teams.
Auburn's Kevin Harris, who coaches girls' and boys' basketball, says in the case of his Group A school, if the proposal passes, it will hurt the Eagles' chances to put competitive teams on the court.
"First is the problem of finding a place to practice. We have only one gym and [must] work in six programs during a time period from when school ends to when they get home at night," Harris said. "Currently, we have four programs with volleyball and three basketball teams. My practice is over at 8:30 at night. Middle-school basketball and volleyball split the gym. Then junior-varsity basketball comes in for an hour and a half. Then the varsity basketball works two hours. Add two more teams to that, you have something unmanageable."
Harris says there are no alternatives for Auburn. Fort Chiswell and Grayson County, both in Auburn's district, have two gyms each, and Fort Chiswell has access to a third gym, at the junior high school.
However, it can be done. Roanoke Catholic, a private school, has one gym but plays boys' and girls' basketball in the winter.
"Four teams use the gym for practice, and we make a schedule on a weekly basis. The boys work from 3 until 5 p.m. and the girls from 5 until 7 p.m. It switches the next week," Celtics athletic director and boys' coach John Cooke said. "The junior varsity and varsity [on both levels] work together and maybe scrimmage. If one team needed the gym by itself, it would go by itself [for an hour] and then the other team would go by itself."
Meanwhile, the coach whose team didn't have gym space might talk to his squad about strategy.
This is a change under Cooke, who took over the Catholic athletic director duties this past year. Last winter, teams didn't work with each other at Catholic, and practices lasted until 9 p.m.
"That was too late for kids to be out with no game who have to work on academics," Cooke said. "If they don't pass, then they don't play."
Although Group AAA schools aren't affected by the proposal, some have the same space problems as Group AA schools, and others have plenty of space.
Franklin County has so much gym space that in the winter girls' basketball, boys' basketball and the wrestling program have their own gyms.
Girls, athletic director Jerry Jerry Little said, practice and play in the gym at the old high school, and wrestlers practice and hold matches at the West Gym, an additional facility that most schools don't have. Boys' basketball uses the main gym.
This would seem like gender inequity, but Little says he hasn't received many complaints.
"There are three primary focuses: There are no teams competing for practice time, no one competing for gym use, and we've built the girls a nice team locker room."
by CNB