Contact tracing knocks Ypsilanti Lincoln boys tires out of district finals against Ann Arbor Huron

ANN ARBOR – A matchup that fans have been waiting for in the last two seasons will no longer take place.

Ypsilanti Lincoln and Ann Arbor Huron were scheduled to play in the Division 1 district championship game on Saturday night, but contact tracing has knocked Lincoln out of the tournament.

Lincoln Sporting Director Chris Westfall confirmed the news to MLive Saturday afternoon, saying the school contacted the Washtenaw County Health Department on Saturday to find out full details of the situation.

“Just incredibly disappointing,” said Westfall. “It’s disappointing for the children involved. You knew in the back of your mind that it could be any of us at any time, and in this case, unfortunately, we are. I feel terrible for kids that this is how their season ends. “

Ann Arbor Public Schools suspend spring sports after a surge in COVID-19 cases

This is the second straight year that the Huron-Lincoln district final was canceled due to COVID-19 concerns, and Lincoln’s season now ends for the second straight year without a degree. Lincoln finishes the season at 10-4.

The Railsplitters are joining a growing number of boys and girls basketball teams who have been forced to withdraw from the state playoffs due to coronavirus issues.

The Ann Arbor Pioneer girls ‘basketball team suffered the same fate ahead of the district semi-finals, and the Detroit Edison girls’ union announced on Friday that it too was eliminated from the tournament after testing positive.

More than 100 boys and girls teams signed off from the tournament on Wednesday March 24th, although that number has grown steadily since then.

The rising number of withdrawals from the tournament coincides with a nationwide surge in coronavirus cases.

As of Saturday afternoon, the state has an average of 3,678 new COVID-19 cases per day. This is the highest value since the end of December.

Huron also had its own COVID issues this week as most of its varsity team was out of competition during the district’s semi-final win over Saline on Wednesday.

The River Rats are expected to have their full varsity team back for next week’s regional game on Tuesday against the winner of Dexter / Ann Arbor Skyline.

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