IHSAA, IGHSAU announces changes to XC postseason

Dates previously set for the 2020 IHSAA and IGHSAU cross country postseason will be split at next month’s meets to accommodate competition and crowds with COVID-19 related precautions.

State qualifying meets and the state meet will now be separated by classification and take place over two days.

The state meet will remain in Fort Dodge at Lakeside Golf Course, where it has been run as a co-ed event since 1993.

“Part of the fun of state is all the ‘crazy’ and the crowds but that is just not smart this year,” Newton girls’ coach Rachelle Tipton said. “So I appreciate the state making changes so it can be safe as possible.”

Class 4A and 3A will run their meets one day earlier than initially planned, with state qualifying now taking place on Wednesday, Oct. 21, and the state meet on Friday, Oct. 30.

“I think it’s great so we can follow protocol and compete,” Newton boys’ head coach Steve Weeks said. “Competing is No. 1. I think given other states are not competing, this set up will work best.”

Class 2A and 1A will compete on the originally scheduled dates, with state qualifying on Thursday, Oct. 22, and the state meet on Saturday, Oct. 31.

The boards of the IHSAA and IGHSAU have approved the changes for 2020.

As an additional precautionary measure at state qualifying meets, 1A will go from five sites to eight sites.

This will cut attendance at each 1A location by around 10 teams per gender.

With this change, 1A will feature 16 state qualifying teams — the top two teams qualifying at each site, instead of the usual three — and 10 individual state meet qualifiers for each gender instead of the usual 15 individual state qualifiers.

The IHSAA and IGHSAU anticipate this will be a one-time qualifying change.

Class 2A, 3A and 4A will remain unchanged on qualifying teams and individuals for the 2020 state meet.

State qualifying meet sites for all classes have been released and posted on each of the websites.

Assignments for those meets will be released the week of Oct. 12.

“It will be an adjustment running qualifying on a Wednesday but nothing we can’t handle,” Tipton said.

The 4A girls race will begin at 10:30 a.m. on Oct. 30 followed by the 4A boys race at 11:00 a.m.

The 3A girls race will begin at 3:30 p.m. on Oct. 30 followed by the 3A boys race at 4:00 p.m.

The 2A girls race will begin at 10:30 a.m. on Oct. 31 followed by the 2A boys race at 11:00 a.m.

The 1A girls race will begin at 3:30 p.m. on Oct. 31 followed by the 1A boys race at 4:00 p.m.

Parking will be available inside Kennedy Park. Spectator tailgating will not be permitted.

Admission for spectators will be $10 each upon arrival to Kennedy Park as the shuttle bus system utilized in 2019 will not be used at the 2020 event.