The state cross country meet could get a makeover if high school athletic administrators pass a proposal calling for four races instead of two.
Starting today and running through Thursday, Hawaii’s ADs are on the Big Island at the Hilton Waikoloa Village for the 58th annual Hawaii Interscholastic Athletic Directors Association conference. The cross country measure is one of 45 topics to be discussed during legislative sessions.
At first glance, the cross country proposal appears to be a simple continuation of something the ADs instituted in 2012. That’s when, even though they kept one boys race and one girls race, they decided to determine four team champions (Divisions I and II boys and girls) based on individuals’ finishes in the race.
Now, however, there is a push to make the dividing line more complete, with a total separation of Division I and II (boys and girls teams and individuals) races.
There are two drawbacks, according to coaches queried, to the measure submitted by the Big Island Interscholastic Federation. Firstly, doubling the races adds more need for resources and lengthens the time of completion of the event. Secondly, it would squash any chances of a strong individual runner who happens to be on a Division II team from vying for a Division I title.
HIADA proposals must pass through a committee before being heard by the full body of ADs from Hawaii’s five leagues. Items making it through the conference’s final assembly Thursday go on to Friday’s Hawaii High School Athletic Association executive board meeting — also at the Hilton Waikoloa Village — where they can be ratified, denied or amended.
Another hot topic is football state tournament overtime. A measure introduced by the Oahu Interscholastic Association calls for college overtime rules to be adopted. This came about due to last season’s Division II championship game in which it took seven overtime periods for Lahainaluna to defeat Konawaena, 75-69.
Harold Tanaka, the Farrington athletic director who is also the OIA football coordinator and a member of the HHSAA football committee, said he loved watching it but realizes such a long game is not good for tournament logistics. Due to the extra-long contest, the state championship tripleheader on Saturday, Nov. 18, took more than 12 hours and didn’t end until 1:04 a.m. Sunday.
Under college overtime rules, starting with the third OT, each team is required to go for the 2-point conversion after touchdowns. Lessening the chances of conversion success increases the chances of a game ending sooner and student-athletes and fans returning home at a reasonable hour.
In track and field, there is a HIADA item (submitted by the Interscholastic League of Honolulu) for the addition of a 4×800 relay, which would give distance runners opportunities to compete in more events.
Some of the other measures to be discussed include the possibility of limiting the number of teams qualifying for state tournaments in certain Division II sports, changes in state tournament seeding and a switch in some state tournaments’ hosting rotation.
In addition, there are 12 wrestling proposals, with the brunt of those concerning weight management and seeding criteria.
The breakdown of proposals by sport (or other generic topic) follows.
>> Air riflery — 4
>> Canoe paddling — 2
>> Cross country — 2
>> Football — 1
>> Judo — 4
>> Track and field — 8
>> Water polo — 1
>> Wrestling — 12
>> Various sports start dates — 4
>> Various tournament sizes, seeding or hosting rotation — 6
>> Volleyball — 1
