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SEE YOU SOON …

South Hamilton takes part in Light Up Iowa on Friday

The lights shine bright at Taylor Field in Jewell Friday night. South Hamilton took part in Light Up Iowa, where stadium lights were turned on all across the state as a sign of solidarity during the coronavirus pandemic. Lights were left on for one minute for each day of school missed. Photo by Angela Hewitt

WEBSTER CITY — What started as an idea among athletic directors inside the Heart of Iowa Conference quickly transitioned to statewide participation Friday night.

The result? Stadiums and fields from border to border lit up the sky.

South Hamilton was one of many schools to take part in Light Up Iowa, a concept first proposed by Todd Gordon, the athletic director at Greene County High School who also serves as the social media director for the Iowa High School Athletic Directors Association.

“Todd Gordon threw it out in a meeting and he thought we should do it as a conference,” Todd Coy, the athletic director at South Hamilton said. “He then threw it out to the athletic directors association to see if other schools were interested and a lot were.”

The concept was simple: schools were encouraged to turn on the lights at football, baseball and softball fields for one minute for each day of school that has been missed since Governor Kim Reynolds recommended school closures to combat the coronavirus pandemic. And so at 8 p.m. on Friday, stadiums came to life again for 15 minutes.

The South Hamilton baseball field under the lights Friday night in Jewell. Photo by Angela Hewitt

Light Up Iowa will continue each Friday night until schools reopen. This Friday’s event will once again begin at 8 p.m. and the lights will remain on for 20 minutes.

“It was awesome and it made you realize what you were missing,” Coy said. “It’s a challenge right now, that’s for sure. I haven’t seen a (South Hamilton) athlete since spring break.”

Spring sports all across the state are currently suspended until May 1. The Iowa High School Athletic Association and Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union have reformatted the schedule in an attempt to provide spring sports, but that’s provided the schools are allowed to resume classes on April 30.

Earlier on Friday, the state’s governing bodies for prep athletics also released a revised schedule for baseball and softball to compensate for the pushed back spring season.

Originally slated for a May 4 start, the first day of baseball and softball practices have been moved to May 18. The first day of games is now slated for June 1.

If schools are not allowed to resume on April 30, there is the possibility that the schedules could be altered once again. However, if Governor Reynolds recommends that schools remain closed through the end of the school year, the spring season would likely be canceled and the summer season could be in jeopardy as well.

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