All three fires burning in Southern California on Tuesday played a hand in the cancellation of athletic events for Santa Clarita Valley high schools.
The Rye Fire forced the cancellation of all athletic events in the SCV area.
The West Ranch boys soccer team was set to play host to Calabasas, SCCS was to host Oakwood at The Master’s University, Golden Valley was to host Guidance Charter and Hart was to host Sherman Oaks Notre Dame.
Saugus’ girls soccer team was due to host Santa Paula. Saugus athletic director Jeff Hallman said all athletics were expected to resume tomorrow. The Centurions boys soccer team is set to host Westlake. The Centurions girls basketball team’s game Wednesday against Grant of Van Nuys at the Northeast Valley Tournament was moved to Friday.
West Ranch evacuated its students to College of the Canyons. Wildcats athletic director Cassandra Perez was escorting her class to the location, so she was unsure of how close the fire got to the school. The West Ranch girls soccer team is still expected to host Chaminade on Thursday.
“You just have to be flexible and ready for anything,” Perez said. “We’re just thankful we were able to evacuate everyone safely.”
The Canyon, Hart and Saugus boys basketball teams had their games Tuesday at the Warrior Classic canceled due to the closures of Alemany and Heritage Christian from the Creek Fire. Alemany announced Tuesday night that its Wednesday classes were canceled, but an update on the Warrior Classic slate of games was unavailable.
Golden Valley’s boys basketball team was scheduled to play at the Simi Valley Tournament starting Wednesday, but Simi Valley Unified School District announced its schools would be closed, along with all extracurricular activities.
The SCCS boys basketball was due to open league Tuesday and host Guidance Charter but the school suspended all athletic events for the day.
“You just have to make sure you’re working in the best interest of the athletes and the parents who are trying to get to these games,” said SCCS athletic director Josh Kristoff. “We’re taking it in stride, but, first and foremost, we’re looking out for the safety of our students.
Due to it being a league game, Kristoff assured the boys basketball team would reschedule its contest. He didn’t have any information for the school’s other teams who were supposed to play Tuesday. The Cardinals girls soccer team was scheduled to play Valley Chrisitan at North Hollywood and their girls basketball team was scheduled to face Brentwood at the Milken Community Classic.
Trinity Classical Academy canceled all its athletic events as well. Trinity co-founder and managing director Wally Caddow said the school had a “trickle” evacuation as parents picked up students early throughout the day.
“A lot of our parents are first responders and they were extremely helpful in getting everybody out and coordinating,” Caddow said. “They were out there directing traffic and keeping things smooth.”
Trinity is expected to resume normal operations Wednesday. Its girls basketball team is slated to play at the Vaughan Tournament, which canceled all of its games Tuesday. The Golden Valley girls basketball team is also scheduled to play at the Vaughan Tournament.
The Canyon girls soccer team was scheduled to play at Ventura but the school closed due to the Thomas Fire.
