CEDAR CITY – Canyon View High School’s sport will have an entirely new look this year as the Falcons drop back into 3A classification.
A Canyon View golfer puttes the 18th hole during the Region 12 game on Cedar Ridge Golf Course, Cedar City, Utah, August 4, 2021 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News
The adjustment, which was part of the recent nationwide realignment decided by the Utah High School Activities Association, means Canyon View will no longer be part of Region 9 of 4A as it has been for the past four years. Instead, the Falcons will now compete in the 3A South Division for football and in Region 12 for all other sports.
Meanwhile, the six Washington County 4A schools (Dixie, Desert Hills, Snow Canyon, Pine View, Crimson Cliffs, and Hurricane) plus Cedar High remain in the same region together, with the new seven-school grouping now known as Region 10.
Cedar City News recently spoke to Mike Hudson, Canyon View’s new activity director, after teaching and coaching at the school for the past several years. Hudson succeeds Kyle Robinson, who has returned to his previous AD position at Timpanogos High in Orem.
“I’ve been teaching here for six or seven years, and then that opportunity came up,” Hudson said on Wednesday. “It was a difficult decision because I wasn’t ready to give up coaching. This is my passion. But this is a great opportunity and Canyon View is a great place so I just hope that I can continue to grow with Canyon View and help make it a better place. “
Mike Hudson, the new director of activities at Canyon View High School, Cedar City, Utah, August 4, 2021 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News
Hudson noted that for Fall Sports, all but one of CVHS ‘sports programs will have the same head coach as last year, with the exception of volleyball, which is led by newcomer Tim Eyre.
“There isn’t a lot of transition so the consistency for our programs will be tremendous,” he said.
Canyon View’s first athletic competition of the new school year took place on Wednesday when the Falcons hosted a Region 12 golf match at Cedar Ridge Golf Course. The five participating teams were, in order of goal at the game: Richfield (324), Carbon (329), Emery (356), Canyon View (372) and Grand (389). These five schools form the new Region 12 for all sports except football. Region 12 is one of four regions in the 3A classification, which includes a total of 22 schools.
Soccer is a different story. Canyon View will play in the 3A South Division for soccer, which also includes Carbon, Juab, Manti, North Sanpete and Richfield. Manti and North Sanpete are in 3A region 14 for all other sports, while in football Grand and Emery will both compete at 2A level.
“There are obviously some powerhouses in 3A South Football,” said Hudson, highlighting Juab, the reigning 3A state champion. “Juab did some amazing things last year. Just because we’re 3A doesn’t mean we’ll dominate this region. There is good competition there and we are looking forward to it. ”
Perhaps an example of the ambitious youth and strength that fills the ranks of Canyon View’s growing football program is the new freshman Guyson Cheek, 14 video above.
Canyon View’s soccer team will open their season on the road against Ogden on August 13th. The first home game of the Falcons will take place on August 27th against city rivals Cedar.
Canyon View girls soccer team in action against Payson, Payson, Utah, August 6, 2021 | Photo courtesy Steven Newman, St. George News / Cedar City News
The CVHS girls’ soccer team started their schedule with three away games this week, beating Juab 2-0 on Thursday but losing 3-0 to Payson on Friday morning. Canyon View then defeated Uintah 5-0 on Saturday morning in Salem Hills. The Falcons will then play two more games outside of the region next week: at Dixie on August 11th and at Cedar on August 13th. The Falcons will meet for their home game against Juab on August 17th.
In the meantime, the volleyball team’s season opener is on August 12 at Enterprise at 7.30 p.m. The Falcons will then host an invitation tournament with Cedar High on August 21st.
Canyon View Cross-Country Teams begin their season on Cedar High, which hosts the All Comers Invitational on August 18th at 6pm
The Canyon View girls’ tennis team will kick off their season with a college tournament at Pine View on the afternoon of August 17th, head coach David Fuller said.
Freshman American football player Guyson Cheek after successfully deadlifting 405 pounds in the weight room at Canyon View High School, Cedar City, Utah, June 21, 2021 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News
Other activities where the practices were already in full swing include the marching band, cheerleading, and drill.
Hudson said when the UHSAA made its final realignment and Canyon View was assigned to return to 3A, school officials decided not to petition to stay 4A and continue to be in the same region as Cedar and the schools in the St .George to stay.
“Based on our student body, we felt (the transition to 3A) was probably best for our students,” said Hudson.
Hudson said that although the Falcons will end up making lengthy road trips to region games, they will still play against Cedar High and other former Region 9 opponents on a regular basis.
“We’re continuing to travel for the region, but our games outside of the region are closer because these St. George schools still want to play against us. Our trips outside of the region are much shorter than they used to be, so there’s a bit of balance. ”
Hudson said he hopes Canyon View’s parents, students, and fans will share his excitement for the coming year.
“3A is a new adventure. I think everyone likes adventure, ”he said.
“This is not entirely new. We feel like we have an idea of what to expect as we have been to this area before. But before that there wasn’t an RPI, ”he added, referring to the UHSAA’s rating percent index system that has been in use since 2019 to assign the rankings used for state playoff settings.
“We’re not going in blind, but it’s still a brand new adventure for us. I think that increases the curiosity and excitement, not just for Canyon View, but for the entire community. “
Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2021, all rights reserved.
Jeff Richards, a Salt Lake City native with Panguitch family roots, lived in Moab for 20 years before joining St. George News in 2017. Jeff is a longtime journalist and secondary school teacher. He and his wife Penny are parents to five daughters. They also have two young grandchildren. Jeff and his family enjoy swimming, camping, sightseeing, reading, and photography.
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