Jordyn Levy's next soccer season will be in college, not at Hills West

When Suffolk County sports officials postponed all high school competitions to 2021, it effectively ended the high school athletics tenure of Jordyn Levy.

This year was supposed to be the much-anticipated final turn for the standout Half Hollow Hills West girls soccer player. When Levy, a senior, committed last year to play at Indiana, she fast-tracked her credits in order to enroll at the school for the second semester of the 2020-21 year. With Section XI, the governing body of Suffolk high school sports, postponing all sports to 2021, Levy will be unable to play her senior season.

"It’s really disappointing," Levy said. "I love my team, just being together, the social aspect, and I’ve been playing with everyone for years. And it’s just disappointing that I won’t have my final season with them."

Levy told the Indiana coaching staff when she committed that she would enroll early. The playmaking forward wanted to become acclimated to college and her future teammates quickly, and even though she loves playing high school soccer, she didn’t reconsider her decision after Section XI’s ruling.

"I’ve had this plan to start college early for the last year and I’m really excited to start this new chapter," Levy said, "so I didn’t really think twice about it when they pushed the high school season."

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced on Aug. 24 that lower-risk school sports, which included soccer, could resume on Sept. 21, but he allowed each section to make its own ruling. Two days later, Section XI voted to move forward with high school sports at the time. But on the same day Section VIII, the governing body of Nassau high school sports, voted to postpone all sports to 2021. On Sept. 11, Section XI decided to postpone all sports to 2021.

"They kind of got our hopes up when they told us we’d be able to play September 21," Levy said, "but then they talked about Nassau voting against it, and that’s when I kind of realized the same thing was probably going to happen.

"I’m obviously really excited to start playing in college, but I’ve been looking forward to my senior year since freshman year and I’m going to really miss it."

Levy scored 20 goals and added nine assists last year and was named to Newsday's All-Long Island team. She had 21 goals and 14 assists as a sophomore.

Levy has been training with her SUSA club team but said they have no schedule yet for games or tournaments. The players and coaches wear masks on their way to the field, but train without masks, Levy said.

Levy’s parents, Jenn and Steve, were hopeful their daughter would be able to play her senior season.

"We figured that Section VIII, Section XI would have five, six months from when they locked down the spring to look into the safest way that they can get this done," Steve said. "So I think it was a pretty big disappointment."