Sports:Rosalia to go on its own

Garth Meyer, Gazette Reporter | Apr 11, 20130

A proposal by the Rosalia School District to combine all sports with Tekoa and Oakesdale has been rescinded.

Due to lower numbers in grade school classes, Rosalia put forth the idea in January which culminated in community meetings in Tekoa and Oakesdale.

The proposal would have expanded the existing TOR arrangement for football, baseball, softball, track, cross country and golf to include basketball and volleyball.

“The board decided to go on our own and just be Rosalia,” said Bill Thurston, Rosalia Superintendent.

The change will affect all three schools, beginning with Rosalia, which will compete as a 1B team this fall playing 8-man football.

“We’ll probably offer less sports in the spring,” said Thurston. “I can’t see us having enough for all of those sports. It’ll be interesting, we’ll be fine for awhile but our enrollment keeps going down.”

He said that the Rosalia district made the proposal to Tekoa and Oakesdale because of these numbers.

“We didn’t think we’d have enough kids to offer a jayvee and varsity in sports,” he said.

The result of Rosalia being on its own, he indicated, is that they will likely have the varsity level in every sport, but no junior varsity.

The Rosalia school board voted to go it alone March 28.

As TOR, the combo competed as a 2B team in the WIAA District 9. During basketball season the Spartans and Nighthawks competed at the 1B level in the SE district.

Southeast 1B League also includes Garfield-Palouse, Colton, LaCrosse-Washtucna-Kahlotus, Pomeroy, Tekoa-Oakesdale and Touchet.

In June, Rosalia will graduate a class of 19 or 20. Student counts are lower: they now have 11 fifth-graders, 16 fourth-graders and 13 third-graders.

“It’s going to change our league one way or another,” said Tekoa Principal/Athletic Director Dan Hutton. “But it’s too early to say. We’re looking at all options.”

“Our plans are still to be in a cooperative with Tekoa as we have been for 30 years now, since ‘83-‘84,” said Ken Lindgren, Oakesdale High School Athletic Director.

Oakesdale, with 23 students in the top three grades next year, will combine with Tekoa, which expects 45 students in grades 10, 11 and 12 next year.

“There are a lot of uncertainties,” Lindgren said. “What I’m hoping to see happen is we just get enough kids from Tekoa-Oakesdale that want to play football and we go from there.”

Another area effected is baseball and softball.

“Because it’s a numbers game for those sports,” Lindgren explained. “For track, cross-country or golf, you can do it with just a few kids, but baseball, softball, volleyball, you need numbers.”

All told, a lot may change in the coming weeks as Lindgren, Hutton and others make plans for the fall sports.

“I think a lot of people are surprised this happened,” Lindgren admitted.