All players on the Kingston High School junior varsity football team are in quarantine because a player on an opposing football team tested positive for COVID-19.

School officials say the team recently played the other team in a game.

President James Shaughnessy of the Kingston school board confirmed the quarantine Wednesday afternoon, saying he learned about it in a note from Superintendent Paul Padalino.

“I had just heard about it yesterday,” Shaughnessy said over the phone Wednesday. “It’s a precaution...We don’t know of any positives on our team.”

What You Need To Know

  • KHS JV football players are under quarantine following a game with a team that had a player who tested positive for COVID

  • District officials said there are no positive cases among KHS players, and the 10-day quarantine has been instituted out of caution

  • The KHS varsity team also had its upcoming game against Minisink postponed as Minisink recently played a team that had a COVID-19 positive player

According to school officials, no Kingston players have tested positive for COVID-19 so far. The district is following state guidelines by instituting a 10-day quarantine for all junior varsity players, district spokesperson Karen Seery said Wednesday afternoon.

Seery told Spectrum News because of the state's strict guidelines for releasing information about high school athletic teams, the district has not issued a public notice about the quarantine through news media or its website.

“I don’t know if it’s going to hit the website,” Seery said. “I just found out about it this morning. We haven’t been told by the DOH (state Department of Health) that this is a problem.”

Seery added the quarantine was instituted after the team’s recent game against Cornwall High School. Officials with the Cornwall Central School District have not yet responded to requests for comment from Spectrum News.

The KHS varsity football team suffered a setback, as well. The team’s upcoming game against Minisink has been postponed because Minisink recently played a team that had a positive COVID-19 case, according to multiple school officials.

Seery said she feels for the student athletes who have been looking forward to this unusual spring football season.

“We’re hoping to be able to make these games up,” she said. “They have been through a lot this year.”