BEAUMONT, Texas — It was a decision expected by many, but it didn't make things easier on athletes or coaches when the UIL canceled all spring activities and state championships due to COVID-19.
"I know the UIL did everything they could," Woodville Athletic Director Ty Robinson said. "My heart goes out to all the seniors. Their senior season got cut short and it's one of those things nobody had control over."
Once the UIL broke the news, Nederland track and field coach Matt Ellis sent a message to his team through text messaging.
"First thing I told them was I love them and miss them," Ellis said. "Use this as motivation for college. Don't dwell on the facts that you didn't get your senior year. We plan for the future and train for events coming up but I think our kids understand that even more when you look at what they went through with Imelda, the TPC explosion and now this."
Though the season is lost, Robinson knows his athletes have brighter futures ahead of them.
"This is a small bump in the road," Robinson said. "These guys are going to do great things and become husbands, fathers, mother's and those things are so much bigger and so much more important than athletics."