Storm cancels basketball tournament for Vallecitos

Vallecitos Elementary School and the other six small elementary schools in northern San Diego County and southern Riverside County which have sports tournaments with each school hosting a different sport each month were supposed to have traveled to Borrego Springs Elementary School for a Feb. 14 basketball tournament, and while basketball is played indoors that day’s rain prevented the travel necessary for the tournament to take place.

“It was just unfortunate that we were not able to do the tournament,” Vallecitos coach Ray Hanbeck said.

Hanbeck received the call from the Borrego Springs coach at approximately 7:40 a.m.

“Everyone had gone to the school looking forward to going on the bus,” Hanbeck said.

The Vallecitos players had more incentive to make the trip to their own school than other students.

“There were a lot of kids who had not shown because of the rain,” Hanbeck said.

Rainbow was not the only community where some roads were inaccessible. Boulders on the road limited travel to Borrego Springs Elementary School and caused classes that day to be canceled.

“There was no tournament that day,” Hanbeck said.

The cancellation of the tournament meant that the Vallecitos students didn’t have to return to Rainbow in the afternoon – after everybody else had been dismissed.

“We had a deluge of rain coming down ourselves, so our school ended up closing as well,” Hanbeck said.

The volleyball tournament is played outdoors, so basketball is the only indoor competition the seven schools play. Volleyball, soccer, flag football, cross country, softball and track and field are scheduled with alternative dates in case of rain, but basketball did not have a rescheduling option.

“We don’t have a rain date because it’s never happened before,” Hanbeck said.

Logistics may prevent this year’s basketball tournament from being played on another date.

“As far as I know I don’t think it’s going to happen,” Hanbeck said.

Next month’s cross country meet at Hamilton High School in Anza will be the next activity for the seven schools. If weather permits the meet will take place March 14, and March 21 is the scheduled rain makeup date.