Marion/Peabody-Burns wrestling team nixed for this year
Discussion still underway for combined baseball and softball teams
Marion-Florence USD 408 school board members voted 7-0 Monday night to enter into a cooperative agreement for wrestling with Peabody-Burns USD 398.
However, down the road in Peabody, USD 398 board members took no action on the subject, feeling it was "too late" to make the logistics work for this school year.
During a Tuesday telephone interview, Peabody-Burns superintendent Tom Alstrom said the idea developed during talks between the two schools about teaming up for baseball and softball teams.
If those two sports go well, wrestling will be a good possibility next year, Alstrom indicated.
Alstrom said he wanted to make sure Marion patrons knew that he had proposed the idea for a joint wrestling squad and Marion district "agreed to go along with it."
During the Marion meeting, board members, along with athletic director Tod Gordon and head coach Chad Adkins discussed various scenarios involved in fielding one team from two schools.
Issues discussed at the Marion meeting included who would pick up the tab if there were extra equipment or uniform costs, assistant coaches, and transporting students.
During the Peabody-Burns meeting, Alstrom said his board members had numerous questions they wanted answered before making a decision — questions such as how many kids would be participating, transportation costs, and other issues.
Although a joint wrestling squad is not on the agenda for the 2004-05 school year, Alstrom felt it was likely the two districts would team up for baseball and softball.
"This is not a 100 percent go, but is probable," Alstrom said. "They (USD 398 board) still have to look at budget costs and other things before that is official.
"The last thing we want to do is get into something for one year and then get out of it," he added, noting that would not be good for the camraderie of the two towns.
The deadline for a baseball/softball cooperative agreement is Jan. 1.
