Coronavirus case forces Hartsville to cancel JV football game against Myrtle Beach
The junior varsity football game scheduled for Thursday night between Myrtle Beach and Hartsville has been canceled because of a positive coronavirus test on the Hartsville team, Hartsville High athletics director Barry Harley confirmed Monday.
The Red Foxes had one JV player test positive for COVID-19 last week and the team is shut down for 14 days while the positive player will be in isolation and several other players are in quarantine for the two-week period.
Hartsville canceled its JV game against Fort Mill last Thursday as well because of the positive test.
Harley said the JV games are the first sporting events the school has had to cancel or postpone because of a positive coronavirus test, and Thursday’s game is also the first cancellation or postponement for Myrtle Beach teams, Seahawks athletics director John Cahill said.
“I think the Myrtle Beach High athletic trainers, and our head coaches, and our assistant coaches, and our student-athletes are doing a great job understanding what needs to be done with all of these protocols,” Cahill said.
Cahill said athletes at Myrtle Beach High are not being regularly tested for coronavirus, though they can consult a member of the school’s athletic training staff led by Andrea Owens if they have concerns.
Policies regarding the coronavirus are the same for athletes and non-athletes in all Horry County schools, according to Horry County Schools spokeswoman Lisa Bourcier.
Students attending HCS schools have a coronavirus checklist to complete each morning and students who display symptoms are asked to isolate for up to 10 days based on S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control recommendations, Bourcier said.
They can return sooner if they are sick with another illness or test negative for COVID-19, both of which require a medical note.
The parents of students showing symptoms are encouraged to consult a health care professional regarding the student getting a coronavirus test. No Horry County Schools employees perform tests.
Each school is assigned a DHEC nurse who assists in the determination of required isolation and quarantine for students and staff. Quarantine recommendations are based on individuals being within six feet of a positive or suspected case for more than 15 minutes, Bourcier said.
Harley said Hartsville players receive a temperature check and fill out a coronavirus symptoms questionnaire before each practice, and the infected player had an elevated temperature on Monday and was tested Thursday.
Any Hartsville student who has a high temperature or displays other symptoms needs a doctor’s note to return to school, Harley said.
This story was originally published October 13, 2020 at 12:04 PM.
