Record snow causing many high schools to cancel spring games

BOX ELDER COUNTY, Utah – Snowy fields are making it tough for many schools to move forward with spring sports.

Some school districts are already looking at dozens of cancellations and some of those games may not get back on the calendar.

In Box Elder County the athletics director said the teams are running out of time to get in all of their games.

It’s why some coaches and parents are trying to push back against mother nature.

Might as well take a day off for picture day. That’s what the girls softball team at Box Elder High School did Monday.

Player Malena Benson said, “Try our best to do what we can do, keep playing”

Her teammate Cindy Stokes said it’s hard practicing inside.

“We have good coaches. They help us out,” she laughed.

Springs sports in northern Utah are often challenging. This past Sunday, players, parents, and coaches fought back against this snowy winter by scooping and moving the snow off the softball field.

“We shoveled the field with sleds. We’d fill up sleds and then everyone would carry them out and then there were snowblowers that also helped us,” Stokes said.

“Wheelbarrows,” Benson added.

The Monday morning they got another several inches of snow.

“We’re not happy about it,” Assistant coach Lisa Hall said.

Assistant coach Bobbi Jeppsen said, “All this week we have four home games scheduled. We were supposed to play today and tomorrow, Wednesday, Thursday. I guess five, and Saturday.”

They’re still hoping to get some of that in. A grounds worker cleaned up the field again Monday so now they just need it to get the field less wet and muddy.

These are the kinds of challenges many school districts are dealing with right now, as the spring sports are supposed to get up and running.

“Yeah, we haven’t been outside once at all to practice or anything like that,” Benson said. “Luckily (we) got two games in before St. George, and that was the beginning of March.”

They’re done with the snow, but as everyone keeps pointing out. “We need this right,” Anderson said.

The Utah High School Sports Association says it’s not unusual to have cancellations this time of year because we’re usually dealing with rain.

Several school districts said they are taking it as it comes but many are still facing dozens of cancellations this week.