Whitehall softball team combines with Arcadia

As the Whitehall High School softball team prepared to open its season, the district realized they didn’t have enough players to field a team.

High school principal Eric Young told the district school board last Monday that, while they planned on having enough for a full team, there ended up being only five players go out for the sport. The district had to pivot and found a partner in Arcadia. 

The Arcadia program was also short on numbers as they had just seven junior varsity players, Young said. Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association rules prevented the Whitehall program from joining the Arcadia program for varsity competition that close to the start of the season, but the Whitehall players are able to play junior varsity with Arcadia. 

Young said the players will be able to participate in about 15 junior varsity games, which will be complete games, unlike some programs, which only allocate a few innings to junior varsity players. 

Whitehall does have one senior who won’t be able to compete at the varsity level, but Young said the Arcadia coaches have done a great job handing that situation.

“We really appreciate them taking her in and treating her like one of their seniors,” Young said. 

This is the first time the Whitehall program has been unable to field a team. They hope the program can get back on track in the future. Young said there are a large number of seventh- and eighth-grade players, however, they do not yet know whether they will participate in softball or track and field at the high school level. The softball and track seasons are separated at the junior high levels, but both compete in the spring in high school.