THE EVERETT ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2021 Page 13 MIAA Board: Lynn Classical and Lynn English formally approved to join GBL in Fall 2021 Board votes unanimously to waive 2-year wait rule; Schools will participate in athletics this year By Steve Freker M ake way for the Rams and the Bulldogs! The Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association's (MIAA) Board of Directors voted unanimously, 240, at their regular meeting on Thursday to allow Lynn Classical High School and Lynn English High School to immediately join the Greater Boston League (GBL) as full participants for the Fall 2021 season. The MIAA Board voted to waive a standing rule where schools usually had to wait two years before leaving one league and joining new one. The Lynn Classical Rams and Lynn English Bulldogs had been charter members of the Northeastern Conference (NEC), over 40 years, before both decided to break away from the NEC at the end of 2020 in December. The GBL board voted unanimously in December to accept the two Lynn schools and the NEC soon followed suit and voted to allow the pair of schools out of their league agreement with no waiting period. The MIAA vote on Thursday sealed the deal offi cially and the two Lynn schools are now GBLers. The GBL now has no doubled in size in just four years, from four schools in 2017 to eight schools today: Chelsea, Everett, Lynn Classical, Lynn English, Malden, Medford, Revere and Somerville. "It is great news for those two schools and also for the Greater Boston League," said Malden High School sixth-year Director of Health, Physical Education and Athletics Charlie Conefrey, who is also a sitting member of the MIAA Board of Directors, casting his vote alongside his colleagues Thursday. "We as a league were thrilled when we heard last year as early as the fall, that Lynn Classical and Lynn English were interested in becoming GBL members." With the addition of the Lynn schools, the GBL becomes that much stronger and one of the best conferences in the state, according to GBL President Chris Mastrangelo, who is prinlar sports, but overall, it will be a very balanced league. All of the GBL schools, including our newest members, understand and look forward to that." The entry of Lynn English cipal of Malden High School. "We were already a strong league. With the addition of Lynn Classical and Lynn English, we are now the premier urban high school athletic league in Massachusetts," Mastrangelo said Thursday. "It will be an exciting future for our league in the coming years." "There is just a lot of common ground between all our urban-based schools, with demographics, geographic proximity and the competition levels," Conefrey said. "Of course there are some schools which are stronger in particumarks the entry of the twotime defending state boys basketball champion. English also has a strong track and baseball program. Lynn Classical has been a consistent participant in the football playoffs and also is highly competitive in boys and girls basketball, soccer and baseball.
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