Fight over soccer tournament heads to WVa Supreme Court

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — The West Virginia Supreme Court has been asked to vacate a ruling to temporarily halt part of the state high school soccer tournament.

The Secondary School Activities Commission said in its appeal petition Thursday that a Berkeley County circuit judge lacked jurisdiction in the case.

The judge ruled in favor of Martinsburg High School soccer player Emily Beck. She sought to delay the Class AAA tournament, which was set to start Friday in Beckley.

Berkeley County high school soccer teams were unable to compete in sectional play because the county’s rate of coronavirus cases prohibited athletic contests from being played. Instead, boys and girls teams from nearby Jefferson County advanced to the state tournament.

Beck’s petition said Berkeley athletes were denied equal protection under the law because they did not have access to free virus testing given to other counties.

The judge and Beck’s attorneys have until Friday morning to file written responses.

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