The Student News Site of Palo Alto High School

The Paly Voice

The Student News Site of Palo Alto High School

The Paly Voice

The Student News Site of Palo Alto High School

The Paly Voice

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Outdoor sports, activities canceled indefinitely due to poor air quality

Due to the wildfires persisting in the North Bay, the Palo Alto Unified School District has ordered that all outdoor games and practices be canceled until further notice because of the poor quality of the air.

The teams affected consist of cross country, football, girls’ golf, girls’ tennis, volleyball, and boys’ and girls’ water polo. Even volleyball, whose games and practices all take place inside, has their game this afternoon canceled, according to information released by the district online.

According to the Washington Post, the majority of the fires raging in the North Bay are not yet contained, which means it is unclear when outdoor games and practices will resume normally.

The boys’ water polo team (6-10, 5-5) is one of the many Paly athletics teams affected by this district decision and according to senior left driver Bryan Look, the cancellations do not come at an ideal time for the team.

“At this point in the season, the cancellations are a big problem for us,” Look said. “We need those practices to be ready for the postseason.”

Paly was slated to play a home game against the Homestead Mustangs (8-5, 6-5) tonight, but the game will not be played due to the potentially hazardous air quality.

Instead, the game will be rescheduled, but with just over a week left in the regular season, the boys’ hectic final week and a half of the season will get even crazier.

“Rescheduling those games is going to force us to play three or more days in a row,” Look said. “We lose all the momentum we had at this point in the season and we’re going to have to find a way to make it work.”

Beginning on Saturday, the boys have five games in the next seven days before the end of the regular season, and during that time, they will play their rescheduled game against Homestead.

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Benner Mullin, Author