HIGH SCHOOL

Dowling Catholic baseball, softball seasons canceled after positive test for COVID-19

Cody Goodwin
Des Moines Register

An already-reduced season became even shorter for the Dowling Catholic baseball and softball teams.

Both programs have been shut down for the remainder of the summer after a member of the baseball team tested positive for COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the coronavirus. 

Dowling's athletic director Tom Wilson and head baseball coach Mark Roering confirmed the news to the Register. 

"We're shut down," Roering told the Register. "We're done."

Dowling Catholic's baseball and softball teams saw their seasons come to an end on Wednesday after a member of the program tested positive for COVID-19, the respiratory illness caused by the novel coronavirus.

Both Roering and Wilson said the person who tested positive was in close contact with the entire baseball program. The cancellation of the seasons, first reported by WHO-TV, marks the highest-profile school affected by the coronavirus this summer.

More:COVID-19 has disrupted the seasons of these Iowa high school baseball and softball programs

Dowling baseball was the No. 1-ranked team in Class 4A in the latest Iowa High School Baseball Coaches Association rankings. The Maroons were 16-2 after splitting a doubleheader against Ankeny on Tuesday evening.

Dowling softball posted an 8-10 record this summer after also splitting a doubleheader against Ankeny on Tuesday, and had won two of its last three games.

Both teams were scheduled to play doubleheaders against West Des Moines Valley, Des Moines East and Ankeny Centennial to round out the regular season. 

"It's a sad deal for the kids, for sure," said Roering, who coached Dowling to the 4A state semifinals last season and to the state championship game in 2017. "We had a lot of momentum and were playing really well.

"We've talked about the possibilities and held our breath all season that it wouldn't affect our team. It just did, and got us at a terrible time, too."

A positive test means a team must quarantine for two weeks before returning to action. Only the Dowling baseball team is being quarantined, Wilson said, while the softball program is monitoring symptoms and temperatures.

Both teams would be eligible to return to play and practice on July 22. But by then, the postseason for both sports would be well underway.

Dowling softball was scheduled to play at Indianola in a Class 5A regional semifinal on July 18. If the Maroons had won, they would've likely faced defending state champion Valley in the regional final.

The 4A baseball postseason is scheduled to begin July 17. The Maroons were in line to earn the No. 1 overall seed if they would've advanced to the state baseball tournament at Principal Park in Des Moines.

"Without enough days to quarantine before the playoffs, that puts us behind the eight ball and we have to be socially responsible and do what's right," Roering said. "It's raw. I haven't had a lot of time to process it.

"It's very disappointing. It's just sad for the players. Ultimately, it's about them. They put all the hard work in during the fall and winter and on their own during the break. They were having a great season. I'm heartbroken for those guys.

"They all dream of getting to Principal Park and doing something special. Now they won't get that opportunity."

Cody Goodwin covers wrestling and high school sports for the Des Moines Register. Follow him on Twitter at @codygoodwin.

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