Boys lacrosse: Poor air quality postpones all NYSPHSAA games until Friday
(Updated at 6:55 p.m. following a second postponement, which also impacts the championship games).
With smoke from the wildfires burning in eastern Canada still drifting south and negatively impacting air quality, the NYSPHSAA on Wednesday postponed the boys lacrosse tournament.
All eight boys lacrosse semifinals originally scheduled to be played Wednesday in Albany and Cortland were initially pushed back a day. When the forecast provided little hope the Air Quality Index would get below 100 on Thursday, a decision was made to play the East and West semifinals on Friday.
The championship games at Hofstra University will now be contested on Sunday.
Officials will continue to monitor air quality and information from the New York State DEC will guide any further decisions to postpone. The position statement on physical activity and wildfires from the National Federation of High Schools declares an AQI in excess of 100 to be unhealthful.
Scarsdale, Rye and Pleasantville were all in game-day mode Wednesday, getting ready to head to The University at Albany when word of the postponements broke. All three teams scrambled to adjust travel and practice plans.
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According to the state DEC, the Air Quality Index for the Upper Hudson Valley was 192 on Wednesday at 10 a.m., which means the air is unhealthy for sensitive groups.
"We definitely noticed the air yesterday," Rye coach Steve Lennon said. "The thing it affected most was the need for lights. We had a 5-7 p.m. practice slot and it was basically dark by 5:45 p.m. "
The lacrosse and football stadiums at SUNY Albany are used simultaneously for the East semifinals. The game between Scarsdale and Farmingdale is now scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. on Friday. Pleasantville and Manhasset go at 4 p.m., while Rye and Manhasset start at 5:30 p.m.
"Practice was interrupted twice on Tuesday by lightning," Scarsdale coach James Synowiez said. "We only got to get our sticks going and had a film session. We're still working on a plan for today."
Rye is not allowed to practice outside Wednesday, so the Garnets were planning to watch more film and do a walk-through in the gym.
"We'll play a little dodgeball to lighten the mood," Lennon said.
Pleasantville had a 90-minute practice scheduled at Putnam Valley's indoor health and wellness facility.
All tickets purchased in advance for the Wednesday games will be honored going forward. Spectators who are holding tickets and can no longer attend should contact service@gofan.com.
As of now, none of the other NYSPHSAA spring championships scheduled for Friday and Saturday are impacted, but the state will be monitoring air quality for those events, as well. Outdoor practice sessions at state championship sites on Thursday have been cancelled.
Mike Dougherty covers boys lacrosse for The Journal News and lohud.com. He can be reached at mdougher@lohud.com. Follow along on Twitter @lohudlacrosse.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: NYSPHSAA postpones boys lacrosse semfinals due to poor air quality
