Just over one year after the last winter state champions were crowned and then subsequent spring season was canceled, the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association announced last Friday that it will be conducting a spring sports state tournament beginning on June 7 and ending with title games on June 18.
Last winter, state champions were crowned for indoor track, swimming and wrestling, but the basketball tournament was nixed in March prior to the state semifinals by the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2020 spring season was the next casualty, as would be the 2020 fall schedule and subsequent 2020-2021 winter season and state championships.
With the 2021 spring state tournament initially in jeopardy, teams from Charles County embarked on a spring season that ended on Tuesday with the Southern Maryland Athletic Conference Potomac Division championships. But with the announcement by the MPSSAA that the state tournament is now back online, coaches are gearing up for the upcoming postseason.
“I think the kids are all very excited,” said La Plata baseball coach John Childers, whose team captured the 2019 2A state crown and is technically the reigning state champions in that bracket. “I think a lot of them have already changed their previous plans so that they can take part in the state tournament. We have 10 seniors on the team and I think most of them are eager to get back to compete for another state title.”
Teams from across Calvert and St. Mary’s counties were in the midst of their spring seasons and preparing for the SMAC Chesapeake Division championships on June 18 and 19. But now those schools have nixed all remaining league contests and postseason games so that teams can focus on the upcoming regional and state games next month.
“It’s going to be exciting,” said Calvert High (5-1) junior shortstop Karlee Hughes. “I know we were really looking forward to the conference champs next month, but being able to play for a state championship will be exciting. There are a lot of good teams in the 2A in SMAC and across the state, so the competition is going to be really tough.”
The regional playoffs for all spring sports would essentially begin with the quarterfinals on June 7, followed by semifinals on June 9 and finals on June 11. The state quarterfinals would get under way on June 14, followed by semifinals on June 16 and state finals on June 18. The higher seeds will host until the state finals, which are scheduled to be held at neutral sites.
