Americus-Sumter Boys’ Basketball Team is placed under quarantine after player tests positive for COVID-19

Published 8:23 pm Thursday, December 17, 2020

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AMERICUS – The Americus-Sumter boys’ varsity basketball team (ASHS) is off to a good start to the 2019-2020 season. The Panthers are currently 3-1 overall and are 1-0 in the Region 2-AAA standings. Their most recent win was a thrilling 41-40 victory at Lee County on Saturday, December 12. Like many high school and college teams across the country, the Panthers have already had to navigate their way through scheduling difficulties due to COVID-19 issues involving their opponents. However, according to ASHS Athletic Director Coleman Price, the Panthers themselves now have to be quarantined due to the fact that an ASHS player has tested positive for COVID-19.

The ASHS team was supposed to travel up to Marietta this weekend to compete in the Lemon Street Classic at Marietta High School. The Panthers were scheduled to play Pacelli in their first game of the tournament on Saturday, December 19, at 2 p.m., but with the ASHS player testing positive for the virus on Friday afternoon, the team will now have to remain in quarantine for 14 days according to COVID-19 guidelines from the Georgia Department of Public Health.

Price told the Americus Times-Recorder that the ASHS boys’ team was also supposed to take part in a tournament at Tift County on Tuesday and Wednesday, December 29-30, but ASHS was notified a week ago that the tournament organizers had decided to cancel that tournament due to a rise in cases in Tift County.

Price further stated that before it was found out that the ASHS player had tested positive, ASHS Head Coach Johnny Genwright had reached out to Lee County Head Coach Kirven Davis to inquire about the Panthers’ possible participation in the Lee County tournament, which is scheduled around the same time. However, with ASHS being under quarantine, they will not be able to participate in that tournament either.

The Panthers’ next game will be a region game at Pike County on Friday, January 8, at 7:30 p.m. Their next home game is scheduled to be on Saturday, January 16, against Crisp County at 7:30 p.m.