Athletics is Back!

by Cerwin D Haynes

Taking a breath after running four laps for Aquatics (water polo + swim/dive) head coach Diana Romero, one of her student-athletes worried that her team looked out of shape.

Thankfully, coaches are planning for exactly that.

After a 13-month absence from campus, the teams of East Los Angeles College Athletics has been given permission to resume outdoor conditioning activities on campus beginning today. Coach Romero's players were the first to take the field along with Men's Soccer at 7am this morning, while football got their first taste of on-campus activity this afternoon at 3pm.

The school - in accordance with LA County recently improving into the Orange Tier of COVID guidelines - recently approved ELAC Athletic teams to return to campus for condition activities. Key among return protocols: all teams must stay outdoors, student-athletes and coaches must adhere to social distancing guidelines, and currently no equipment is allowed to be used during activities. But despite the limitations, everyone was happy to be back on campus... and coaches know to ease into things given they haven't been able to be hands-on with their players for so long.

"Expect your players to basically not done anything in a year", said Athletic Director and football head coach Bobby Godinez during last week's coaches' meeting.

All in all, both players and coaches were happy to be back.

HUSKY BITS

The first week return of Athletics continues tomorrow. Men's Basketball - the subject of the current season of Netflix's Last Chance U docu-series - will make their 2021 campus debut along with Women's Basketball, Baseball and Wrestling.