Girls’ flag football, boys’ volleyball will begin in 2026-2027 school year
By Bob Sutton
Special to The Alamance News
Girls’ flag football and boys’ volleyball were approved to be sanctioned sports within the North Carolina High School Athletic Association during last week’s board of directors meeting.
Both sports begin in the 2026-27 school year. Flag football will be a fall sport, while boys’ volleyball will play in the spring.
In Alamance County, Eastern Alamance and Southeast Alamance began girls’ flag football teams last year. This spring, Southeast has been playing boys’ volleyball.
Statewide, there have been 135 girls’ flag football teams. There’s a slightly lower number of teams for boys’ volleyball.
There were complications involving girls’ flag football because some schools have played in the fall and others in the spring. A separate vote was held to determine when girls’ flag football would compete.
NCHSAA commissioner Que Tucker said conferences must be established for the new sports because of the varied participation among schools.
Postseason format retained for now
A proposal to reduce the number of teams in state playoffs was narrowly rejected by the NCHSAA’s board of directors.
Outgoing NCHSAA president Stephen Gainey, the superintendent of the Randolph County School System, said without having a full year of the association’s new eight-classification system that more time should be given to fully assess what might be best.
Spring sports playoffs have just begun in some sports.
The proposal to reduce playoff entries from 48 teams to 32 teams in Class 1A through Class 7A for the 2026-27 school year was defeated by a 10-7 vote. There are 24 playoff teams in Class 8A – the largest classification.
Officials at some schools in Alamance County have noted concerns about the costs and time away from school for long travel in the postseason for what often have been lopsided competitions in early rounds.
Gainey said he expects the topic will be revisited.
The Hawbridge School placed in conference
The Hawbridge School of Saxapahaw will be a member of the Central Tar Heel 1-A Conference, joining Clover Garden and River Mill among others.
The Hawbridge School was previously approved for NCHSAA membership beginning in the 2026-27 school year.
Last week, NCHSAA approved the addition of two more members. Durham Charter will be on board during the upcoming school year. John Paul II Catholic in Greenville will join in 2027-28.
