Butler hurdler Anna Baxter wants to save her senior season.

Golden Tornado distance runner Chelsey Kabel, too.

So does Mars pitcher Joey Craska.

And thousands of other high school athletes across the state who are living in limbo.

Frazier senior softball player Emi Curcio is among them. She started an online petition late last week to implore the PIAA to wait to make a decision about canceling the spring sports schedule in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

The petition had nearly 50,000 signatures as of Sunday afternoon.

Curcio's plea: Wait two weeks and then reassess.

The PIAA, which has already suspended the basketball tournament and the Class 2A swimming and diving championships, is scheduled to take up the topic in the coming days. The WPIAL will discuss its options at its regularly-scheduled monthly meeting Monday.

Gov. Tom Wolf ordered schools to close until at least March 30 in response to the novel coronavirus 2019 threat.

“All I ask is for the PIAA to take into consideration the fact that the outlook on the spread of COVID-19 may be very different at the end of Governor Wolf's two-week school cancellation. This means that making the decision to terminate the seasons before this preventative measure is fully evaluated could potentially be a bad decision that will directly affect thousands (of) high school athletes across the state,” Curcio said in her petition.

Baxter jumped on board quickly. She was one of the first 1,000 to sign.

She emphasized the petition wasn't demanding the PIAA let athletes play now, but rather hold tight to see how the virus progresses.

“I fully understand the severity of this situation, and I am thankful for the decisions being made to protect everyone's health,” Baxter wrote on a Facebook post sharing the petition. “However, I strongly feel that sports should be postponed instead of cancelled, at least until the effects of this two week cancellation can be fully evaluated.”

Baxter said many of her peers feel the same and the petition was a way for them to be heard.

“This is something I believe in,” she said. “We don't have too, too much of a voice.”

Baxter had a strong indoor season. She broke the 60-meter hurdle record that had stood for eight years.

Both the Butler boys and girls track and field teams have high hopes for the spring. The girls team has won three consecutive WPIAL team titles.

They want a chance at a fourth.

“This is very important to me,” said Kabel, who also was one of the early signers of the petition. “We've been training for four years, working hard to give our best. For the seniors, this is our last shot at this. We don't get another one.”

Craska, who also signed Curcio's online petition, is one of the top returning players in the state. A right-handed pitcher, Craska worked this offseason honing a curveball and is excited to see it at work on the mound.

“We had an intrasquad game the other day and I felt really good,” Craska said. “Hopefully we'll have a high school season.”

Craska, though, stressed he understood why spring sports are being put on hold. He said he'd be at peace if the decision ultimately comes to cancel the season to prevent the spread of the pandemic.

“Obviously, it's tough, but at the same time you have to look at the safety of everyone else. We still don't know a lot and safety has to come first. You can't be putting others at risk,” Craska said.

“Hopefully the decision will be made to just postpone it for now and not to cancel it.”

Here is the full text of Curcio's petition:

My name is Emi Curcio. I am a senior softball player for the Frazier Commodores. My school is located in Fayette County, Pennsylvania.

In light of recent events surrounding the spread of COVID-19, many major sports organizations have been suspending and canceling their seasons to prevent the spread of the virus. Within the past few days, the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) has taken action to hinder the spread of the virus by suspending the remainder of the winter sport seasons. Just today, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf has closed all schools for the next 10 business days. This decision also brings spring sports to a halt until school returns.

It has been brought to my attention that PIAA officials will be meeting within the next few days to make what will likely be a final decision on the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year sports seasons. I would like to outline the sentiments of not only the affected athletes, but also of many teachers, coaches, parents, sports fans, and community members.

As a representative of the groups listed above, I would like to start by saying that I understand the severity of this situation. I also understand that it is ultimately the PIAA's decision to determine the fate of the season. However, at this time, I wholeheartedly believe that there are many more reasons to continue the postponement until it is deemed safe to play, rather than to cancel the remainder of the seasons.

Being a senior, I am concerned that this may force me, as well as many others, to give up their final season of high school sports. For many, this will be the last chance to achieve longtime goals. Many athletes have spent months perfecting their craft and working on skills to help their teams (and themselves in the case of individual sports) to success during the winter and spring seasons. These athletes have worked hard to have the opportunity to play out their final seasons as a representative of their schools. If the seasons are canceled, these senior athletes will have put on their school uniform for the last time without even knowing it.

Although it is very special to me personally, I am not only concerned for the preservation of the seniors' seasons. I would also like to point out that high school sports are responsible for teaching and reinforcing lifelong skills to many adolescents. They learn leadership and teamwork skills by being a part of these teams. In addition to teaching these crucial skills, it also helps to keep them active. This will help to teach them healthy lifestyle skills, which will help to prevent other potential health issues for them in the future.

All I ask is for the PIAA to take into consideration the fact that the outlook on the spread of COVID-19 may be very different at the end of Governor Wolf's two week school cancellation. This means that making the decision to terminate the seasons before this preventative measure is fully evaluated could potentially be a bad decision that will directly affect thousands high school athletes across the state. We ask that the season is postponed, rather than canceled, until there is a better grasp upon the situation and its potential severity within the coming weeks.

I would like to thank you for taking the time to read this. By signing this petition, you are helping to communicate the thoughts and feelings of many high school athletes across the state to the PIAA and other proper authorities who are handling this situation. As a representative of these athletes and other affected groups, I would like to thank you for time and consideration.

Sincerely,

Emi Curcio