CPHS Football: First round playoff vs. Deer Creek canceled, Sandites advance to Stillwater

The first-ever meeting between Charles Page High School and Edmond Deer Creek will have to wait for a future season. The Class 6A-II No. 9 ranked Antlers (4-5) have decided to cancel their first-round matchup against the No. 7 Sandites (6-4) due to COVID-19 concerns.

Deer Creek only had a post-season opportunity to begin with due to a COVID-19-related ruling by the OSSAA that anyone could join the playoffs, regardless of their record, due to the number of district cancelations this season. In a normal year, the Sandites would have been on the road to No. 2 Stillwater (8-0) in their first round game, but when Deer Creek opted in it gave the Sandites a home game.

Now, the Stillwater-Sand Springs matchup will happen next Friday, without the opportunity for Sand Springs to host its first playoff game since 2013. The cancelation could prove to be a blessing in disguise for the Sandites, who would have been shorthanded due to quarantines.

The district as a whole is facing significant uptick in COVID-related quarantines, and as of Friday’s weekly report, 15% of Charles Page High School students and faculty are currently stuck at home. Beginning tomorrow, the district’s secondary schools will be going to Distance Learning for the next two weeks.

Sandite Football players will now have ten days to isolate and ensure that they’ll be available for this huge matchup against the back-to-back State Runners-Up. The Pioneers lead the series 30-12-1 overall, but the schools are tied 1-1 in the postseason. In their last meeting the Sandites rolled to a 49-14 victory on the road in 2015.