Football, Volleyball and Cross Country are all offered as fall sports at Southeast of Saline and all of them are doing very well this season despite the uncertainties the covid-19 pandemic has created. At the beginning of the covid pandemic last spring, many student athletes, including this year’s seniors, were left wondering if they would get to play their sport. Unlike the seniors from last spring who got their season taken away unexpectedly, this year’s seniors were fortunate enough to begin their fall season. Even with all the new rules in place many athletes are just thrilled to be doing the sport they have worked so hard for. To their credit, each of the fall teams have started their respective seasons well. 

The football team is getting prepared for the best season they have had in a long time. With eight seniors this season, they are stacked. “We only had 3 seniors last year, Aaron Kitchener was our kicker but Jude Golden has really stepped up this year,” said senior Sterling Harp. The football team has had all of their games home so far and have picked up wins in each contest. “We are ready to play all of the time, we get pumped up and all of us are in our mode. All of us have a lot of energy which is great carrying into the game.” Eli Sawyers states. The boys are looking forward to the rest of the season-that is if conditions do not worsen. The team is taking a few precautions such as social distancing on and off the field and encouraging spectators to watch from home on the Live Stream.  Players are recommended to wear masks when not playing but most of them are wearing face shields instead. The team hopes to pick up their fourth consecutive win at Russel on Friday. 

The lady trojan volleyball team is also adjusting to rule changes, but have had a bit slower start to the season. The Trojans traveled to Clay Center in late August where they picked up a win against Minneapolis, but lost to the home team in a tight game. After a two week break, they had two separate quads played at home, a change from the traditional annual tournament.  “It was a lot different from the past, I missed all of the teams being here at once. It is more fun to play seven games instead of three, but we have to do what we have to do to keep playing safely,” senior Kara Suhr said. The Trojans faced some tough competition, and lost all three games. “There were some tough teams, Abilene brought it from the being and had the fire all game,” Chase Gilpin stated. Players practiced social distancing and wore masks while on the bench. The team bounced back last Tuesday, catching two wins against Republic County. 

The Cross Country team is facing more lenient rule changes, as competition is outdoors and more spaced out. However, changes persist to some competitions. “In some of the races they will send out a couple teams at a time and wait about two minutes to send the next set of teams to follow, that way we can all keep our distance the best we can.” senior runner Drew Hanson said. Both boys and the girls teams are having dominant seasons, which has propelled the squads to the top of the 3A rankings. The girls haven’t lost a contest, while the boys have placed second just once at Hesston due to a different method of scoring- in standard scoring they won by twenty one points over Smoky Valley. 

During the Corona Virus era, sports are not a possibility without plans to keep people safe from the threat of covid-19. Whether it is limiting spectators,  wearing masks, or distancing athletes, it is now essential they are in place. Some may disagree with the guidelines, but the health department and KSHHA have put these guidelines in place to best continue the possibility of full seasons.