JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – West Nassau has to forfeit its state-record upping 15th competitive cheerleading championship after using an athlete who didn’t meet the minimum requirements for the postseason during playoff competition last January.
The Warriors self-reported their use of an ineligible athlete on Feb. 6, and the Florida High School Athletic Association finished its investigation last week.
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The Warriors went on to win the medium non-tumbling division with 88.5 points to beat Baldwin (87.1), boosting its state-record haul to 12 consecutive and 15 total championships. As is the case in postseason brackets, the championship will be vacated and the following finishers do not move up a spot as a result. The school has the opportunity to appeal the findings and result.
Injury sparks complaint
West Nassau was informed by a notice of allegation made to the FHSAA that it received on Jan. 21, just two days before the state meet. The allegation said the Warriors were competing with an athlete who wasn’t eligible for the postseason.
The student in question was a replacement for one of the team’s original members who suffered a season-ending injury last December.
When that injury occurred, it was after the Dec. 6 cut-off date for teams to declare what division they planned to compete in. In West Nassau’s case, the medium non-tumbling bracket requires 13 to 16 athletes.
West Nassau said it competed in a match on Dec. 20 with only 12 athletes instead of the required 13 on the mat due to an injury to one of its members occurring a day earlier. The replacement athlete took the place of the injured athlete in a Dec. 29 competition, just standing on the mat to fulfill the 13-athlete requirement and not competing in the routine.
West Nassau turned in its final postseason roster on Jan. 6 which had the athlete in question on it because the school thought the athlete was eligible by all letters of the eligibility law. The school said in emails that it interpreted the student-athlete was eligible, and the team met the required number of minimum competitions to qualify for state. The athlete had been on the team in two previous seasons, but didn’t compete this year until the injury.
While the student did meet eligibility criteria to play sports, the athlete didn’t meet the minimum threshold to be on a team for the postseason roster. Minimum eligibility requirements to be on a postseason roster are four contests in competitive cheerleading.
School looked for clarity on issue
The school reached out to the FHSAA multiple times via email and phone after receiving that, and finally made contact with the FHSAA administrator of athletics Danielle Hogle on Jan. 23, the morning of the state semis and final. Hogle spoke with head cheer coach Samantha Beazley that day, and Beazley laid out the scenario that the Warriors were facing.
In an email, Hogle said that since the athlete competed in regionals, “they are technically not eligible to participate here at State,” and any such awards or placements would be revoked.
The flip side of that was there was no way to act on an eligibility issue under such a time constraint. Any such appeal of possible sanctions would also have to take place after the Jan. 23 tournament.
West Nassau asked if it would be able to request a waiver for an athlete who was replacing an injured teammate. In the email, Hogle said a waiver like that wouldn’t typically be granted, and it would’ve needed to be filed before the regional competition.
The Warriors went on to compete and won their 12th straight championship. West Nassau has the right to appeal the decision. In addition to vacating its championship, the school was also fined $100.