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A lack of available players has forced the cancellation of Friday’s Dunkirk varsity football game against Iroquois.
On Wednesday evening, the district announced the decision to not play the contest against Iroquois, originally scheduled for 7 p.m.
“At this time, our program does not have a sufficient number of players available to field a team that can compete safely,” the school’s Facebook post said. “The health and safety of our student-athletes is always our first priority.
“We recognize how disappointing this is for our players, coaches, families, community, and Iroquois. We have notified Iroquois and Section VI, and we appreciate their understanding. The game will not be rescheduled.
“Our coaches and athletic staff will continue to support our student-athletes as we move through the remainder of the season."
Dunkirk won its last contest against Lackawanna, 22-20, on Saturday. Prior to that, Dunkirk lost 35-0 at Pioneer, and opened the season with a 42-0 loss at home to Depew.
Saturday's win over Lackawanna snapped a nine-game losing streak for Dunkirk dating back to last season. The Marauders finished last season 1-8. Saturday's victory was a costly one, however, as multiple players are not healthy enough to compete this week, including Aries Cheverez, one of Dunkirk's team captains.
The cancellation of Friday's game goes down as a 20-0 loss via forfeit in the standings, per Section VI forfeiture rules. Dunkirk falls to 1-3 overall in Class B2. The Marauders have four remaining games on the schedule, starting with Thursday, Oct. 1 at Cheektowaga. The regular season concludes on Friday, Oct. 23 at Fredonia.
Friday's forfeit also resulted in the cancellation of a performance from the Dunkirk Intermediate School Dance Team, who had prepared for the past two weeks to perform on the field Friday night at halftime. As an intramural program, rather than an official school sport, the team could not extend its hours or duration of the program to accommodate for a make-up performance at a future game. Instead, a last-minute performance was scheduled at the conclusion of the team's final practice on Thursday in the school gymnasium.
Questions regarding the football program's cancellation of Friday's event may be directed to Athletic Director Kyle Jarrell at kjarrell@dunkirkcsd.org.