Peter Macchia, the father of William Floyd High School track star Zariel Macchia, is hoping their lawsuit against the New York State Public High School Athletic Association will have a larger impact than just reinstating Zariel in this weekend’s state indoor track and field championships.
The senior was in court in Riverhead on Wednesday arguing her case after filing the lawsuit on Tuesday to put a temporary restraining order on a Feb. 18 decision by the NYSPHSAA to rule her ineligible to compete for violating Rule 7 of the association’s rulebook, dubbed the “College Rule.”
The ruling by the NYSPHSAA would prevent Macchia from competing in Saturday’s championship meet on Staten Island.
The BYU commit had qualified for the 1,000- and 3,000-meter races. She is the defending champion in the 1,000 meters.
The “College Rule” states that high school athletes are not allowed to “participate in practice or competition with or against any individual or team representing a college” during a sport’s season.
The NYSPHSAA argues that she broke that rule by taking part in the Boston University David Hemery Valentine Invitational.
Peter Macchia reiterated in a phone interview with The Post on Wednesday night that the family had not been aware of the rule and that they believed that by running unattached to the school there was no issue.
“Zariel’s been beating professionals and college runners most seasons, kind of like once a season for the past four years,” Peter Macchia said. “We were informed that if she’s unattached she should be fine. … It wasn’t really explained that there was a rule about it, but it was like, you can just avoid any issues of any kind if you just do it unattached and don’t wear the [William Floyd] uniform.”
Macchia’s lawsuit, which was viewed by The Post, questioned the manner in which the rule has been applied.
She claims that if the ban isn’t reversed by the court, she “will suffer irreparable harm which cannot be remedied.”
The family is hoping the suit can get Macchia reinstated in time to compete on Saturday, but her father added that he hopes it can help create an appeals process that would prevent this from happening to another student-athlete.
“The biggest picture goal is not just creating awareness for Zariel but for change, maybe we can continue and directly make changes happen.”
The Macchia family will be back in court Thursday morning in front of Judge Christopher Modelewski for further witness testimony before he makes his ruling.
Tom Combs, the executive director of Suffolk County’s governing body of interscholastic sports, reiterated that the family was aware of the rule, and in an interview with Newsday, he applauded the judge’s decision to hear more testimony.
“We’re happy that the judge wants witnesses that can corroborate that the parents knew the rule, which is a good thing,” he said. “And we’re going to provide that.”
Macchia has already won six state championships during her high school career and she has been touted as a potential Olympic hopeful in the future.
She’s competed for Team USA’s under-20 squad, been named Gatorade’s New York girls Cross Country Player of the Year and holds seven Long Island record times.
