The MIAA Golf Committee met virtually Wednesday morning, approving statewide realignments for the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons, and solidifying fall tournament sites, among other agenda items.
The committee unanimously approved a three-division alignment for the statewide tournament in the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons.
Golf teams were sorted by enrollment then adjusted based on factors as determined by the Tournament Management Committee (TMC). Vocational schools were moved down two divisions, while private schools and cooperate schools were moved up one division. Single-gender schools were aligned by doubling their enrollments.
While the committee showed unanimous support for the alignment, the factors were a cause of slight concern given the low number of divisions golf supports. For example, a cooperative team that wasn’t competitive in Division 3 still must play in Division 2 under the new alignments, a bigger relative leap in competition than jumping a division in football or basketball would be.
Schools can appeal their placement, but not on the basis of team success. Appeals can only be heard based on school type, participation numbers and significant changes in enrollment.
The committee focused on keeping the three divisions as equally balanced as possible, with respect to both the divisions themselves and the regions within each division. Division 1 has 81 teams dispersed across the North, Central, South, and West regions. Division 2 has 101 teams across the North, Central, South Shore, Cape Cod and West regions. Division 3 has 95 teams across the North, Central, South Shore, Cape Cod and West regions.
The proposal now moves on to the TMC for final approval.
Local schools were aligned in the following divisions:
Division 1: Holyoke, Amherst Regional, Northampton
Division 2: Belchertown, South Hadley, Hampshire Regional, Easthampton, Frontier Regional, Hopkins Academy
Division 3: Smith Academy
The committee also finalized the host locations and dates for sectional tournaments in the fall. All three West sectional tournaments are scheduled to tee off at 10 a.m. on Oct. 19. The following locations were approved as hosts:
Division 1: Orchards Golf Club, South Hadley
Division 2: Cold Spring Country Club, Belchertown
Division 3: Berkshire Hills Country Club, Pittsfield
Other agenda items included updates from the MIAA COVID-19 task force and a review of financial reports for the current fiscal year. The committee will meet again on Sept. 21.