Plans for summer camps are on hold

During the high school season, you'll often hear athletes mention their team's success started during the summer months.

They'll credit a summer or college campus camp.

Those type of activities may now be in jeopardy due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Head coaches are quite aware a quiet summer would not be ideal.

"It's tough," said St. Charles North girls basketball coach Mike Tomczak. "For a team that values culture as much as we do, it's the relationships and the experience we have together in the summers that we kind of use to measure ourselves."

In his four years as head coach, Tomczak's North Stars have spent each summer at the Purdue University team camps in West Lafayette, Ind.

"We have come to the realization it probably isn't going to happen this summer," said the former freshman and sophomore coach for former Conant coach Dan Travers' program.

"Don't get me wrong, we would love for it to happen. It's such a big part of what we do in addition to summer leagues (last year at Geneva and Montini). But that trip to Purdue is much about building culture and building relationships for us. The girls love it."

Not to mention possibly adding a few pounds.

"You get three meals a day and the food is outstanding," Tomczak said with a laugh. "You always come back a couple pounds heavier."

It's obvious having to stay home this summer would be a big disappointment.

"We ask the kids at the end of each season what some of their favorite things are about St. Charles North basketball, and they always talk about this," Tomczak said. "Purdue does such a great job. It's such a cool and unique opportunity. It would really be a bummer if we don't get to do it."

The North Stars actually got a bonus last summer.

"We had a really successful fundraiser and were able to fly out to North Carolina State for a two-day camp," Tomczak said. "It was great. We kind of got a personal tour of Cameron Indoor Arena (home of Duke University), we got to walk around the Coach K court and we played on the NSC court."

While his players chose the North Carolina trip last year because of their big fundraiser, they still didn't want to miss out on Purdue.

"They said 'what about Purdue?' " Tomczak said. "They said, 'we want to go there, too'. So we ended up doing two team camps last summer."

The Glenbard East football team has visited the Laredo Taft field campus in Oregon, Ill., for the past eight years with head coach John Walters.

That was the plan again.

"It's university property of Northern Illinois University, about 30 miles from DeKalb,' Walters said. "We put down a deposit and they hold it for us. When it's over, we pay the bill according to how many guys we bring.

"It's really beautiful, it's nature. They have a huge dorm where the kids stay. The food is second to none. They use a group of people who work in town. It's part of a really close-knit community that runs things there and it's just an amazing experience for our kids and our staff."

The Rams planned the trip for July 27-28.

"But the IHSA calendar kind of dictates what we do," Walters said. "And with things (possibly) getting pushed all the way back to the start of school in late August, it really doesn't look doable unless we did a Friday/Saturday.

"To be honest, I haven't even really looked. I'm like a lot of people holding out hope that things return to normal sooner than later."

Walters said it's a highlight leading up to each fall.

"I think if you ask our players, it's huge for team building for a couple of days and it really sets the tone for what we want to do during the season," he added. "It really brings our guys together.

"Not only the things we do on the football field, its doing things for our team building - bonfires, getting to know each other. It's just a little deeper than games or practices."

Girls from Hersey's tradition-rich girls basketball program under longtime coach Mary Fendley have experienced team camps at Northern Illinois, Wisconsin, Bradley, Loyola and DePaul in past years.

"We just kind of go year-to-year based on what works out best for the kids," Fendley said.

Last year, the Huskies also participated in the Stevenson and Palatine summer leagues.

"Until we get a timeline as for how long the stay-at-home order is in place for much of the country, it's hard to imagine anyone making a commitment for plans this summer," Fendley said. "That's an unknown and I just have to keep reminding myself that we can't worry about something we can't control. Hopefully the kids are doing that, too, and everyone is just doing their best to stay safe and keep others safe."

So what if there are no organized events this summer?

"I feel lucky we have so many returners back," Fendley said. " The summer isn't about the X's and O's of basketball as much as team bonding and getting to know everyone."