NOTES: Laughlin hoping to join 2A Southern League

RENO — Laughlin’s sports teams played for little more than the love of the game last season.

Most of the Cougars’ squads played as an independent rather than participating in the Class 2A Southern League.

Now the Cougars are hoping to be a league member

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Laughlin principal Dick Edwards asked the Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association’s Board of Control to allow his school’s teams to compete for Class 2A titles in all sports other than football, beginning with the winter sports season in 2009-10.

“That’s fine with us, but our football team, I don’t believe we can compete on an 11-man field,” Edwards said Tuesday.

Laughlin hopes to continue to be an independent in football and play a schedule against Class 1A teams, which all play eight-man football.

“I think a future in what would be the 2A is where it’s at,” Edwards said. “I hope there would be some way to keep from destroying our football program.
“When your kids can experience success or just being able to compete, you get more kids out.”

The Class 2A Southern League isn’t against the move, but it might be difficult to implement for the 2009-10 season.

“Our schedules are set for next year,” Needles athletic administrator Bill Darrow said. “How do we go back to schools and say, “Sorry, we can’t play you?’ ”

Earlier Tuesday, the board adopted a reduction to game limits for many sports beginning next season, making it more difficult for current 2A members to add Laughlin to their schedule.

“I would not be against it, that’s just a problem we would face,” Darrow said.

Ideally, Laughlin’s administrators would like the school to be accepted in Class 1A, but its enrollment is more than the maximum allowed by the NIAA.

“The number one option is we would like to be in the 1A for one year,” Laughlin athletic director Ben Fermon said. “We know that’s not going to happen because the North (schools) are not in agreement.”

The board didn’t take action on Laughlin’s request.

FORMAT CHANGE —The board adopted a slight change to the Class 4A baseball postseason tournament format, beginning next season.

Last season, the region tournaments followed a format used by the College World Series. That format has two four-team, double-elimination pools, with the winners of those pools meeting in a one-game showdown for the title.

Beginning next season, each region tournament will be a straight double-elimination tournament.

UP AND DOWN — Faith Lutheran will move to Class 4A next season, but its girls soccer team will participate in the Class 3A Southern League.

The Crusaders and Pahrump Valley both successfully petitioned the NIAA to allow their girls soccer teams to continue to play in the fall as opposed to the winter, when the rest of the Southern Class 4A teams play.

NIAA executive director Eddie Bonine also sweetened the deal for the two teams.

Bonine will allow Pahrump and Faith to meet in a one-match showdown with that winner battling the North’s Class 4A champion.

“They’re going to play for a state championship in the fall,” Bonine said. “We went through the process we needed to go through. They’re not a part of the Clark County School District. I’m not going to hold them at bay.”

HUH? — Five California high schools are members of the NIAA. As of Tuesday, one Nevada high school is a member of the Idaho association for football.

Jackpot successfully petitioned the NIAA to allow it to compete in the Idaho association next year. The move should significantly help Jackpot’s travel. The Jaguars are nearer more Idaho schools than other Nevada schools.