WAILUKU — Carson Hollifield would rather play intramural basketball under the hot sun in a face mask than not play at all.

The St. Anthony School seventh grader has been participating in a voluntary after-school program for middle and high school students to stay active and motivated.

“It’s really fun to get practice in and I like to play after school and have an activity to do,” Hollifield said on Wednesday afternoon during an outdoor game of basketball at the Wailuku campus. “It’s hard wearing a mask but it’s better to wear a mask and play than not to play.”

Over the summer, principal Tim Cullen said that staff decided to implement some form of a sports program this school year in anticipation that Maui Interscholastic League and Hawaii High School Athletic Association competition would be put on hold for a while due to COVID-19.

Intramurals offered this quarter include boys and girls volleyball, boys and girls basketball, and coed track and field/physical fitness from 2:45 to 4 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays.

Girls volleyball, boys basketball, coed soccer and dance were offered during the first quarter. About 60 students have participated in the different programs, Cullen said. The intramurals program is an extension of the physical education program, and a weightlifting and conditioning program will be implemented soon.

All students participating on a team are temperature screened before practice each day, and are required to wear a mask and social distance. There are also handwashing stations located on site.

The program gives all students in grades 6-12 “opportunities to build skills, confidence, school spirit and positive relationships,” Cullen said. And because the younger kids are combined with the older ones, there’s also opportunity for “mentorship and leadership.”

“It’s really created a nice energy for our students and that’s the ‘whole child’ that we talk about — it’s not just about the academics here,” he added.

Hollifield has been playing basketball since he was 4 years old and hopes to join the high school team when the time comes. Knowing that most schools don’t have these options, having this program available at St. Anthony is “really good to keep active,” he said.

His sister Maya Hollifield, a junior, was playing intramural volleyball until track and physical fitness was added to the program.

While taking a quick break, Carlos Schulenburg said he “just wanted to do something and so I signed up” for track, which includes strength training, stretching, drills, running and introductions to different field events like high jump and discus.

“I was thinking about joining the swim team but that’s not going to be here for a little bit,” the sophomore said. “I like it, and I think it’s just good to talk to my friends after school and what not, because some of the kids’ parents are still pretty hesitant about the whole COVID thing, so it’s nice to just do something like this and just talk to people.”

During girls volleyball, which is played on a grass court outside, Yessenia Casillas was practicing her approach and timing.

“I enjoy practicing because I know that there’s people out there who don’t get the opportunity to practice with their actual teachers and their friends,” the 8th grader said. “I like being here with my friends and having fun, and yeah I don’t know, it’s just a really good opportunity for me.”

Also aspiring to join the high school team one day, Casillas said she loves the sport because of the competition, traveling for tournaments and that it’s just a “fun experience going against other people.”

Cullen said that the “biggest event so far” was on Oct. 8 when a student team played a staff team in a friendly volleyball match.

“It was a hard fought battle and the students prevailed 27-25,” he said with a laugh. “A rematch has not been scheduled yet but we want another chance to redeem ourselves.”

More students are participating now than when there were organized sports teams in the past prior to the pandemic, possibly due to a newfound appreciation for sports after the 2019-20 seasons were cut short.

“We’re not afraid to try, we’ve been very creative,” Cullen said. “It’s almost like everyone is appreciating it more because we couldn’t do it last year.”

The future of MIL and state competition is “a moving target and it’s frustrating and we want our kids doing sports now,” Cullen said.

“We hope they continue to make decisions and we hope that our varsity teams get back to it, competing and practicing,” he said. “But until the MIL and the state figures it out, we’re doing it now for our students — they’re not giving up on things they love or trying things they may not have been able to try before.”

St. Anthony also wanted to help out the families whose parents may have picked up a second job or have to work longer hours due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Now their children can be at school for an extra hour, be in a safe place, and so I think the parents really appreciated that,” he said. “There’s no charge, it’s part of the SAS program, and so it’s been great. It’s been a lot of fun.”

Most schools across the state have not been hosting in-person classes amid the pandemic, so as a father that raised three student-athletes, Cullen said he is grateful that St. Anthony has been able to remain open since Aug. 4.

The administration, volunteers and students have “put a lot of hard work” into building the intramural program to meet health and safety protocols, and implementing an emergency response in the event someone tests positive for COVID-19.

“Being back to school and being able to interact, even with all the safety protocols in place, with each other has been a blessing that they do not take for granted,” Cullen said. “The after-school intramural program provides additional options for them to re-engage along with our clubs, arts and service project opportunities.”

* Dakota Grossman is at dgrossman@mauinews.com.