Wyoming adds softball to high school sports offerings

The Wyoming High School Activities Association (WHSAA) on Tuesday unanimously voted to sanction girls softball, joining 48 other states that already offer the sport.

Softball becomes the 11th girls sport offered in Wyoming, and the inaugural season will be played in 2021. The vote to approve the sport marks the end of a long campaign by softball supporters, who initially started to push for sanctioning in 2018.

According to WHSAA bylaws, eight programs must commit to the sport and meet sanctioning standards before the association will consider approving it. Before Tuesday’s vote, supporters in various school districts across the state fought to win approval from their respective school boards. In some districts, the fight continues.

From the Casper Star Tribune:

Some school districts are still debating the vote, according to the WHSAA board of directors. Because the initial softball season won’t be scheduled at the upcoming scheduling meetings, the WHSAA board of directors did comment that a soft deadline would be set for just after the New Year for new programs to vote before being left out of the initial season due to scheduling and left to play starting in the 2023 season.

Nationwide, participation in high school softball has been relatively stable over the last five years. According to the NFHS, 362,038 student-athletes played high school softball during the 2018-19 school year, making it the fifth most popular sport among girls.

South Dakota now stands as the only state not to sanction high school softball.

Read more from the Casper Star Tribune.