Take a Journey Through Christmas Wonderland in Alton Grandpa Gang...
Read MoreHigh School Practices Begin July 31, 2017
Fall Prep Season Starts Aug. 18
By Jim Wieners
High School Athletic Teams that compete in the fall, 2017 season can begin tryouts or practices Monday, July 31, the start of week five on the Missouri State High School Activities Association Standardized Calendar as long as athletes report their physicals to their schools before beginning practice.
Fall sports teams include Boys Soccer, Boys Swimming and Diving, Cheerleading (yearlong), Cross Country, Field Hockey, Football, Girls Golf, Girls Tennis, Girls Volleyball and Softball. The fall season starts Aug. 18 with team sports Jamborees taking place one weekend before. Season ends with state championships ending with Football on Nov. 25
In the Winter of 2017-18 Basketball and Wrestling starts practices Oct 30 and can open their season Nov. 17 with Basketball Jamborees taking place the weekend before. Girls Swimming and Diving practices begin Nov. 6 with meets starting Nov. 24. Wrestling, as well as Girls Swimming and Diving, end Feb. 17, 2018 while Basketball ends March 10, 17, 2018.
Spring Sports in 2018 begin practices begin Feb. 26, 2018, and contests begin March 16, 2017 with team Jamborees taking place one weekend earlier.
Spring Varsity Sports include Baseball, Boys Golf, Boys Tennis, Boys Volleyball, Girls Lacrosse, Girls Soccer, Rugby, Track and Field and Water Polo (a co-ed sport for some teams). Boys Lacrosse, a club sport, begins practices well before varsity sports starts and their season starts in early March.
Spring Sports end with state championships or one day before the final day of school. Baseball and Girls Soccer are the final sports to close 2017-2018 with the final date being June 2, 2018.
Beginning with the 2018-19 school year high school fall sports will begin in week six, Aug. 6, 2018. MSHSAA members, last April, voted 338-152 for the change in start date.
SWIMMING AND DIVING will now be a two-class sport. There are 134 Girls teams and 109 Boys teams with 129 being the minimum for two-class sports. However, MSHSAA members, last April, voted 291-244 to allow Boys Swimming and Diving to be a two-class sport regardless of the number of registered school teams. The State Swimming and Diving finals, at St. Peters’ Rec-Plex, will be Nov. 4, 2917 (Boys) and Feb. 17, 2018 (Girls).
FALL-2017 DISTRICTS BEGIN Sept 25 (Girls Golf, Girls Tennis), Oct 4 (Softball), Oct 16 (Girls Volleyball, Classes One-Two Boys Soccer), Oct 20 (Football) Oct 21 (Class Four Cross Country, Classes Three-Four Boys Soccer), Oct. 28 (Classes One-Three Cross Country. Note: Field Hockey is not an MSHSAA sanctioned sport for State Championships.
WINTER 2017-18 DISTIRCTS BEGIN Feb. 9 (Wrestling), Feb. 17 (Classes One-Three Basketball), Feb. 24 (Classes Four-Five Basketball).
SPRING 2018 VASRSITY DISTRICTS BEGIN April 30 (Boys Golf), May 5 (Classes One-Two Track and Field), May 7 (Boys Tennis), May 11 (Baseball), May 12 (Girls Soccer, Classes Three-Five Track and Field). Note: Boys Volleyball, Girls Lacrosse and Ruby state championships are not MSHSAA sanctioned.
MSHSAA SANCTIONED STATE CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS (except Swimming and Diving)– Girls Golf (Oct. 9-10), Girls Tennis (Team Oct. 12, Singles and Doubles Oct. 14), Softball (Oct.21), Girls Volleyball (Oct.28), Cross Country (Nov. 4), Boys Soccer (Classes One-Two Nov. 4, Classes Three-Four Nov. 11), Football (Eight Man and Class Six Nov. 17 or 18, Classes One-Five Nov. 24-25) Wrestling (Feb.17), Basketball (Classes One-Three March 10, Classes Four-Five March 17), Boys Golf (May 14-15) Track and Field (Classes One-Two May 18-19, Classes Three-Five May 25-26), Boys Tennis (Team May 42, Singles and Doubles May 26) Baseball (One Class per day, Five Classes May 29-June 2) Girls Soccer (Classes One-Two May 30-31, Classes Three-Four June 1-2)
NORTH COUNTY CHRISTIAN will compete in the Missouri Christian State Athletic Association Championships in Joplin, Mo., Oct. 26-28 (Fall), Feb. 15-17 (Winter) and May 3-5 (Spring).