PHOENIX – Eliminating high fives, coaching in groups of 10 people or less and administering regular temperature checks are among the recommendations the Arizona Interscholastic Association is endorsing for high school athletes as they begin practice for the fall sports season.

The AIA, the state’s governing body for high school sports, is following guidelines produced by the national Sports Medicine Advisory Committee for a state that is in phase one, which is the case with Arizona. The association also offered guidelines for when the state moves into phase two and three.

“Our priority through this is for the safety and well-being of all our state’s student-athletes and those that support them,” said David Hines, executive director of the AIA. “We are not guaranteed to have a fall season. We are preparing to be ready on time, but it will all depend on how this situation develops as the summer goes on. We just ask that schools, coaches, players and parents consider and utilize the guidelines until we get back to normal.”

Oro Valley is bringing in a new company to manage the town-owned golf courses.

Billy Casper Golf will take over management from Troon Golf within the next 90 days.

It’s the latest twist in the town’s management of the golf course, which has been a major controversy since the Oro Valley Town Council agreed to purchase the golf course and an associated community center in 2014 from the HSL Properties. While the community center has been a popular spot for everything from youth summer camps to senior leisure classes, the golf courses have lost money and required millions in subsidies from the town.

The resulting controversy triggered a 2015 recall attempt and was a major issue in the 2018 election that brought Mayor Joe Winfield and three new Oro Valley council members into office.

Oro Valley posted a request for proposals Jan. 24 searching for a new course operator. Troon was brought on to handle the golf course, food and beverage, tennis operations, and swimming pool operations in 2015. Since then, the town took over the pool and El Conquistador Tennis, LLC took over tennis.

If you're craving sports right now, you might be surprised to learn that some are still going - in a more virtual format.

For instance, NASCAR has gone online to iRacing, Formula 1 had its own virtual Grand Prix, and even boxing fought it out in a video game format.

Now, after weeks of bouts and climbing up the brackets, FC Tucson has taken its place in a head to head finalist round for the USL eCup Rocket League competition.

If you're not familiar with Rocket League, it's an online video game of soccer with some twists. Instead of people on the field, there are cars being controlled by the players. These cars also have rocket boosting ability (thus, the title of the game) that is key to getting in place at the right time to score or block a goal.

See the highlights from last night's semifinal match between FC Tucson and Tacoma Defiance, including the 200th goal of the tournament from FC Tucson.

PHOENIX – The cancellation of the 2020 Native American Basketball Invitational means more to that community than simply taking a summer off from playing ball. Its loss could have a major impact on the lives of many young native people.

A major purpose of the event is to help players attend college, whether as a student-athlete or as a student.

“We created scholarship opportunities,” event co-founder and former Phoenix Suns center Mark West said. “We had a college and career fair to help them talk to people who can help them get to college or a trade school where they can learn a craft.”

The NABI, set for June 21-27 in Phoenix, was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, GinaMarie Scarpa, President and CEO of the NABI Foundation, announced in a press release recently. The annual event began in 2003 as the first national Native American basketball tournament, and it is still the largest.

West said that the first event had 32 teams, but increased to 128 last year. Participating teams came from all over the United States, Canada and even New Zealand, but that became problematic in the midst of a global pandemic, leading to the “unfortunate decision, but correct decision,” West said.

Major League Baseball officials are kicking around the idea of starting the season with all teams at Chase Field and the various spring-training ballparks in the Phoenix area as soon as May, but without fans in the bleachers. ESPN reports:

Though the plan has a number of potential stumbling blocks, it has emerged above other options as the likeliest to work and has been embraced by MLB and MLB Players Association leadership, who are buoyed by the possibility of baseball's return and the backing of federal officials, sources said.

The plan, sources said, would dictate that all 30 teams play games at stadiums with no fans in the Phoenix area, including the Arizona Diamondbacks' Chase Field, 10 spring training facilities and perhaps other nearby fields. Players, coaching staffs and other essential personnel would be sequestered at local hotels, where they would live in relative isolation and travel only to and from the stadium, sources said. Federal officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as well as the National Institutes of Health have been supportive of a plan that would adhere to strict isolation, promote social distancing and allow MLB to become the first professional sport to return.

Major League Baseball is out with a statement this morning saying that various plans are under consideration to take us out to the ballgame again:

MLB has been actively considering numerous contingency plans that would allow play to commence once the public health situation has improved to the point that it is safe to do so. While we have discussed the idea of staging games at one location as one potential option, we have not settled on that option or developed a detailed plan. While we continue to interact regularly with governmental and public health officials, we have not sought or received approval of any plan from federal, state and local officials, or the Players Association. The health and safety of our employees, players, fans and the public at large are paramount, and we are not ready at this time to endorse any particular format for staging games in light of the rapidly changing public health situation caused by the coronavirus.

Major League Baseball's 2020 season is being indefinitely postponed due to the growing coronavirus pandemic. The MLB statement:

Today Commissioner Robert D. Manfred, Jr. conducted a conference call with the 30 Clubs of Major League Baseball.  Following last night’s newly updated recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) restricting events of more than 50 people for the next eight weeks, the opening of the 2020 regular season will be pushed back in accordance with that guidance.

MLB will keep fans updated on decisions regarding plans for the 2020 schedule in the days and weeks ahead.  The Clubs remain committed to playing as many games as possible when the season begins.  We will continue to monitor ongoing events and undertake the precautions and best practices recommended by public health experts, and urge all baseball fans to follow suit.  MLB extends its best wishes to all the individuals and communities who have been impacted by the coronavirus.

As more and more confirmed cases of COVID-19 are announced in Pima County, and the Governor and Superintendent of Public Instruction call for the closure of all public schools, high school sports have been put on hold.

Marana Unified led the way, cancelling all athletic competitions through April 6, in addition to a variety of other activities.

“The health and safety of our students, staff and school community is of paramount concern to the Marana Unified School District,” said MUSD Superintendent Dr. Doug Wilson. “We continue our proactive efforts to provide a healthy and positive educational environment in our schools. District leadership is closely monitoring this ever-changing situation. We are consistently analyzing developments and monitoring student and staff absenteeism, and we are committed to taking actions aligned with guidance provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Pima County Health Department, the Arizona Department of Health Services, and the Arizona Department of Education.”

The district’s announcement, made before Gov. Doug Ducey and Superintendent Kathy Hoffman’s joint address on Sunday, also including cancellation or evening school events, school-wide assemblies, fundraising, parents’ groups and district-sponsored events.

Marana Unified will reassess its closures in April.

Not long after school closures were announced, Marana High School Athletic Director Sarah Whaley communicated to coaching staff that no athletic practices of any kind will take place.

“As frustrating as it may be for our student athletes, we must follow the guidelines set in front of us and wait for further instruction on when we can continue team lifting, practices, competitions and camps,” Marana High School Football Coach Louie Ramirez wrote in an open letter to his athletes and their parents.

In a Monday release, the Arizona Interscholastic Association Executive Board announced that it has not decided to postpone or cancel the spring championship season.

“The governor’s office and the state health department have recommended a two-week suspension of school and activities,” wrote AIA Sports Information Coordinator Seth Polansky. “If this timeframe holds true, it should hopefully not impact postseason tournaments.”

The association also announced that there will not be any interscholastic competitions until Saturday, March 28. The earliest possible date for the resumption of competition will be Monday, March 30 unless otherwise notified.

“Our first objective is to get students back into the classroom and then have them return to the athletic arenas when appropriate,” Polansky wrote. “As Board members we will work diligently with our constituents to ensure a smooth transition back to school as usual.”

The Tucson Sugar Skulls have announced that all Indoor Football League play has been postponed indefinitely:

In response to the coronavirus pandemic and the postponement of this weekend’s games in Frisco and Sioux Falls, along with the state of California’s limit on the size of crowds due to the pandemic, the Indoor Football League will be postponing its season until further notice following Saturday night’s games in Oakland and San Diego.

Both games are still scheduled to kick off at 6:05 PT, but will be played with no fans in attendance. Each game will be broadcast live on Youtube.

“This is an unprecedented situation that we are taking very seriously,” said IFL Commissioner Todd Tryon. “We are monitoring this on a constant basis and are working with the local municipalities and arenas in all of our markets. Our goal is to resume play as soon as possible. The health of our players, coaches, staff, fans, and sponsors is of utmost importance to our teams and to the league, and we will not compromise on those values.”

The IFL will continue to evaluate ongoing events and the safety of our players and will rely on the guidance of public health experts and our league’s Board of Directors in determining when to restart the 2020 season.

NCAA cancels remaining winter and spring championships: https://t.co/qzKAS4McEI pic.twitter.com/G6XreZx35E

— NCAA (@NCAA) March 12, 2020

The NCAA has canceled March Madness and all other tournament play for the remainder of the season.

Likewise, the Pac-12 Conference released a statement Thursday morning canceling the rest of the men's basketball tournament and all future Pac-12 events until further notice.

Here's the full statement:

The Pac-12 Conference has made the decision to cancel the remainder of the Pac-12 Men’s Basketball Tournament and all Pac-12 sport competitions and Pac-12 Championship events, effective immediately, until further notice. This decision has been made in consultation with our member universities in an effort to limit the spread of the virus and in the interest of the health and safety of our student-athletes, campus personnel, working and event personnel, and all those who attend Pac-12 events.

Tucsonan Abdi Abdirahman qualified on Saturday, March 1, for the men's 2020 U.S. Olympic Marathon Team at the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in Atlanta, Georgia. This will be the 43-year-old's 5th time representing the U.S. at the Olympics. He is the oldest American runner to make the team.

Abdirahman finished third with a time of 2:10:03, just behind Jacob Reily, who finished with 2:10:02. Four-time Olympian Galen Rupp came in first place with a time of 2:09:20. All three will represent the U.S. in the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Abdirhman, a native of Somalia, graduated from Tucson High School in 1995 and the University of Arizona in 1999. He became a U.S. citizen in 2000.