Albany athletes meet for conditioning, training

By Donnie A. Lucas

Albany coaches reported larger than usual attendance at daily conditioning workouts for high school and junior high aged students that started last week.

The morning sessions for strengthening and conditioning will continue on Mondays through Thursdays through the end of July, with the exception of a couple of blackout periods in July.

The boys will meet for morning strength and conditioning from 7:00 a.m. until 8:30 a.m. on Monday through Thursdays.

Girls who want to participate will meet from 9:00 a.m. until 10:00 a.m., also on Monday through Thursday morning.

“We have had really good numbers,” boys coach Denney Faith said. “The guys have been cooped up since March, and I think getting out again has added to the excitement, plus we have a good group of kids who are excited about athletics.”

The weekly sessions are slated to continue through July 30, except for some off days in July.

Normally, the summer conditioning is limited to six weeks, but that changed this year because of school closings across the state due to the cornonavirus.

“They are allowing us to go until the time for two-a-days on Aug. 3,” athletic director Ryder Peacock said. “I think they took the restrictions off this summer since the bigger schools didn’t get to have spring training.”

On the girls side, coach Tate Thompson reported as many as 40 local girls participating last week, while numbers were down a little this week.

“We only had 23 girls on Monday this week, but vacation season is starting,” he said. “We also had a few new faces this week.”

The boys will continue meeting from 7:00 a.m. until 8:30 a.m. on Monday through Thursday, while the girls will meet from 9:30 a.m. until 10:30 a.m.

The off days are July 6-9 and July 20-23 for the girls, while the boys will only be off on July 7-8 and July 20-21.

UIL has designated those dates as “periods of no activity.”

In addition to conditioning, athletes will be allowed to engage in a limited amount of sport-specific training.

The boys will practice individual skills specific to football on Monday and Wednesday afternoons at 5:30 p.m. until 6:30 p.m.

The girls also have an hour practice on Tuesdays at 5:30 p.m. until 6:30 p.m. for basketball skills, as well as on Thursday for volleyball at the same times.

Students are kept in small groups in order to comply with stipulations set by UIL.

Thompson said that the girls are split into two groups, alternating between work in the weight room and outside drills.

“We are having to follow the protocol and wipe down all the equipment before and after it is used,” Thompson said. “While we urge the girls to come, we don’t need anyone to come who has any symptoms of the virus. They just need to stay home to be safe until they are better.”

Because of the number of boys showing up for conditioning, three groups were established.

“The guys are going through three rotations, working on weights, agility, and running,” Peacock said.