By Tom Robinson, NEPASportsNation.com
The Old Forge boys basketball record changed between the end of the regular season and the start of the playoffs.
The District 2 committee, during its playoff planning meeting Sunday, issued the Blue Devils a forfeit loss on their regular-season record for failing to reschedule a game.
The punishment proved to be largely symbolic since it did not alter any seeding or in any way change the playoffs, which started Tuesday.
District officials determined that Old Forge did not respond to multiple attempts by Blue Ridge to reschedule their postponed game from earlier in the season.
Late in the season, Blue Ridge reported the situation to District 2 while requesting the right to schedule a replacement game. That request was granted with Blue Ridge adding a non-league contest against Wyoming Seminary during the final weekend of the regular season.
Because Blue Ridge filled its maximum, 22-game schedule, it was not credited with a forfeit win over Old Forge. Only the Old Forge record was impacted and it did not alter any of the District 2 playoff ratings enough for other schools to change any playoff pairings.
During the meeting to finalize playoff ratings, seedings and schedules, the district committee reviewed two games that were not made up.
Pittston Area and Valley View did not make up a boys basketball game. Following a postponement, the schools originally rescheduled for the final week of the season, but both wound up with conference playoff games and agreed not to make up the non-league game.
District 2 accepted the decision by Pittston Area and Valley View not to play a non-league game because of league playoff schedules.
With the forfeit, Old Forge’s regular-season record was changed from 16-5 to 16-6. The Blue Devils improved to 17-6 Tuesday when they defeated Lakeland, 63-36, in a District 2 Class 3A playoff game to advance to Friday’s semifinals.
MORE COVERAGE
Old Forge-Lakeland game story: Defense fuels Old Forge runaway – NEPA Sports Nation.
