By By ERIKA PICKLES and SCOTT NOVAK / Niles Daily Star
NILES - The MHSAA will file a petition this month to the U.S. Supreme Court asking it to review specific matters of law in the sports seasons litigation. It is likely that the MHSAA would be advised by mid May if the Supreme Court will take the case.
While the MHSAA is making plans to switch the seasons schedules, so are local high schools.
Niles, Brandywine and Buchanan all have already made or are in the process of making double schedules for the 2005-06 school year.
Niles High School Athletic Director John Danaher says right now they are just waiting to find out if the Supreme Court is going to consider the case.
The Big 16's games would be played on Tuesday's, Thursday's and Friday nights alternating between the boys and girls.
The new schedule switch will mimic the college schedule. Girls basketball will switch to the fall while volleyball will move to winter. Boys' tennis will switch to the fall and girls to the spring. Boys golf will move to the spring and girls to the fall and boys soccer will move to spring and girls to the fall. Which forces a lot of athletes to have to choose between two sports.
This lawsuit is intended just for basketball and volleyball, so why does tennis, golf and soccer all have to flip as well?
Buchanan and Niles both have auxilary gyms which will help out with practices and additional games. For Brandywine, it will be a little more difficult to schedule practices when you have only indoor sports in the winter.
"The intent with this was to make sure everyone has an equal opportunities to see the girls play and the boys play. I'm nervous about the double headers with the varsity teams. i don't want to get in a situation where its not advantagous to the girls as it is to the boys."
Buchanan and Niles both have auxilary gyms which will help out with practices and additional games.
Dowagiac athletic director Greg Younger knows that change is coming one way or the other.