Meeting was convened at 4:30 p.m. by Chairman Frank Majikes
ITEM 1 Chairman Majikes called the meeting to order at 4:30 p.m.
Absent but accounted for: Eric Emmerich, Joseph Farrell, Vito Quaglia, Mary Ruth Tanner, Chad Vinansky
ITEM 2 A motion was made by Pat Patte, seconded by Bill Schoen, to approve the minutes of the September 20, 2016 meeting. All Ayes
ITEM 3 Pat Patte reviewed the Payment Rate structure for the assigned workers for 2016-2017 District II sponsored championship events for all sports. That list includes the officials, game and assistant game managers, site managers, and all other workers associated with the event. The rate sheet will be made available to game managers by contacting the District II Secretary prior to the contest. Following the presentation, a motion was made by Chris Thomas, seconded by Maureen Williams, to approve the report as presented. All Ayes
ITEM 4 Sports Reports:
· Baseball (Frank Majikes): Frank Majikes informed the committee that the Baseball Steering Committee and Sports Medicine Advisory Committee’s proposal on baseball pitching restrictions has passed the Board of Directors’ on a first reading. Again, the limits are as follows: 76-100 pitches 3 calendar days of rest; 51-75 pitches 2 calendar days of rest; 26-50 pitches 1 calendar day of rest; and, 1-25 pitches require no rest. Those totals represent the number of pitches thrown by an individual pitcher regardless of the level – Junior High, Junior Varsity, Varsity – at which they are thrown.
· Basketball (Frank Majikes): Frank Majikes reviewed the PIAA championship schedule for the 6 classifications.
· Cross Country (Bill King): Bill King reviewed a letter received from the Wyoming Valley Conference Cross Country Coaches Association asking that the District II Committee reconsider their decision to deny access to the course for a walk through prior to the scheduled meet on October 26, 2016 as previously decided by the Committee at the September meeting. After discussion, the Committee felt that no further action was required and the decision made in September would remain in place. The Committee will review the process following the completion of this year’s championships.
· Tennis (John Coyle): John Coyle reviewed the recently completed championships and informed the committee that AA Team Champion Scranton Prep will be involved in the upcoming PIAA State Team Tennis Championships.
· Volleyball (Maureen Williams): Maureen Williams reviewed the seeding procedures for the district championships. All league competition concludes during the week of October 24-28 with the District Championships scheduled to begin on Monday of the next week.
· Field Hockey (Chris Gegaris): Chris Gegaris reviewed the plans for the upcoming District II Field Hockey Championships.
· Soccer (Mark Rinaldi): Mark Rinaldi informed the committee that all is set for the upcoming District II Soccer Championships. The seeding meeting for the playoff brackets will be held on Thursday evening with the brackets being released on Friday.
· Football (Mike Ognosky): The current standings are located on the web page and are up to date through Week #8. The District II Football Committee will be meeting on Sunday, October 30th at 9 a.m. at the Wilkes-Barre Area Career and Technology Center to determine the final seeding and develop the playoff brackets. That information will then be disseminated to those schools who will be participating. All member schools have indicated their desire to participate in this year’s playoffs – there were no opt outs received.
· Wrestling (Jay Starnes): Jay Starnes reviewed the 2016-2017 District II AA/AAA Wrestling Dates, Times, and Sites with the Committee commencing with the first day of practice scheduled on November 18th through the completion of the PIAA AA & AAA Wrestling Championships scheduled for Hershey’s GIANT Center on March 9, 10 & 11. The Secretary will disseminate the hand out of dates to the Athletic Directors ASAP.
ITEM 5 The District II Committee acted upon the following eligibility requests presented at this evening’s meeting:
· A motion was made by Chris Gegaris, seconded by Ron Collins, to approve the eligibility of Julia Cicco, West Scranton to Holy Cross, in accordance with Article VI, Section 4, of the PIAA By-Laws, principal-to-principal sign off, effective immediately. All Ayes
· A motion was made by Mark Rinaldi, seconded by John Haas, to approve the eligibility of Breana Delgado, Wireglass (Fla) to Mid Valley, in accordance with Article VI, Section 4, of the PIAA By-Laws, principal-to-principal sign off, effective immediately. All Ayes
· A motion was made by Chris Thomas, seconded by Ben Tolerico, to approve the eligibility of Samantha Good, Nanticoke to Wyoming Valley West, in accordance with Article VI, Section 4, of the PIAA By-Laws, principal-to-principal sign off, effective immediately. All Ayes
· A motion was made by Jay Starnes, seconded by Maureen Williams, to approve the eligibility of Sebastian Prez-Cervantes, Spartan HS (Texas) to Abington Heights, in accordance with Article VI, Section 4, of the PIAA By-Laws, principal-to-principal sign off, effective immediately. All Ayes
· A motion was made by William King, seconded by Bill Schoen, to approve the eligibility of Hannah Samsel, Leesville (Louisiana) to Dallas, in accordance with Article VI, Section 4, of the PIAA By-Laws, principal-to-principal sign off, effective immediately. All Ayes
· A motion was made by Chris Gegaris, seconded by Danielle DiPeitro, to approve the eligibility of Mitchell Warnick, Coughlin to Holy Redeemer, in accordance with Article VI, Section 4, of the PIAA By-Laws, principal-to-principal sign off, effective immediately. All Ayes
· A motion was made by Ron Collins, seconded by John Coyle, to approve the eligibility of Matthew Wehrmann, SCPS (Florida) to Honesdale, in accordance with Article VI, Section 4, of the PIAA By-Laws, principal-to-principal sign off, effective immediately. All Ayes
· A motion was made by Bill Schoen, seconded by Pat Patte, to approve the eligibility of Molly Macur, Northwest Area to Wyoming Seminary, in accordance with Article VI, Section 4, of the PIAA By-Laws, principal-to-principal sign off, effective immediately. All Ayes
· A motion was made by Mark Rinaldi, seconded by Bill King, to approve the eligibility of Phoenix Garvin, Canaan’s Land to Wallenpaupack, in accordance with Article VI, Section 4, of the PIAA By-Laws, principal-to-principal sign off, effective immediately. All Ayes
ITEM 6 Frank Majikes and Bill Schoen presented a medals update regarding our new medals and awards provider, Honor Awards of Taylor. Fall Chairpersons should have been contacted already by Honor in regard to their medal requirements for their Fall Championships.
ITEM 7 Chairman Majikes notified the Committee that Old Forge High School is appealing to the PIAA State Committee regarding the District II student-athlete eligibility ruling at a recent hearing.
ITEM 8 Chairman Majikes provided the committee with a number of updates as a result of actions taken at the latest PIAA State Board of Directors meeting including the following:
· On a suspended protocol basis, accepted the recommendation of the Executive Director to amend the PIAA By-Laws, Article VIII, Period of Participation, “students are limited to 6 seasons of participation beyond sixth grade or 4 seasons of competition beyond the eighth grade.
· On a suspended protocol basis, accepted the recommendation of the Executive Director to amend the PIAA By-Laws, Article VIII, Period of Participation, “a student is considered to represent the student’s school during a particular season only if the student has participated in a Contest in that sport.”
· On a first reading basis, accepted the recommendation of the Pennsylvania Coaches Association to develop a by-law or policy to address unsportsmanlike behavior by teams or individual athletes during the medal/awards ceremony.
· On a suspended protocol basis, accepted the recommendation of the Executive Director to amend the PIAA By-Laws, Article VIII, Period of Participation, “the number of semesters to be counted under Section 1A is not triggered until the student enrolls and attends the 9th grade. The number of seasons to be counted under Section 1B is triggered at the beginning of the student’s 7th grade year. Enrollment and participation at any school, not just PIAA member schools are included in this determination.”
· On a first reading basis, approved changes in the PIAA Member School Athletic Transfer Waiver Request Form to include a “timing” section that reads as follows, “A receiving school principal shall initiate this form after the student has been enrolled in their school and is no longer in attendance at their previous school. The receiving school principal shall forward this form to the sending school upon completion and without undue delay.”
A complete summary of the PIAA Board of Directors’ Actions from the meeting of Wednesday, October 5, 2016 can be found on the District II webpage at www.piaad2.org.
ITEM 9 Chairman Majikes reviewed an incident that occurred at the recent District II Girls Tennis Team Championships involving a coach at a member school and a parent from another member school. He shared with the committee members communications he has received from the District II Tennis Championships Tournament Director, the Coach, and the Principal of the member school who had a parent involved in the incident. The Committee reviewed all of the information provided and discussed the situation. Following the discussion, a motion was made by Bill King, seconded by Jay Starnes, to accept the reports and approve the action of the member school’s administration in addressing the issue with the parent involved. All Ayes
ITEM 10 Chairman Majikes shared with the committee an anonymous report he has received regarding alleged recruiting allegations involving a member school. He explained that in accordance with PIAA guidelines, when we receive an “ANONYMOUS” tip, it will be forwarded to the school(s) involved. He has done that and also communicated with the initial reporter of alleged allocations and has encouraged them to come forward so that the committee may investigate the situation.
ITEM 11 Chairman Majikes advised the committee that Abington Heights has added both boys’ and girls’ Lacrosse.
ITEM 11 A motion was made by Jay Starnes, seconded by Chris Thomas, to adjourn the meeting. All Ayes
Meeting was adjourned at 6:50 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Mike Ognosky
Mike Ognosky
District II Secretary