For all three of Eddy County’s high schools – Carlsbad High, Artesia High and Loving High – COVID security protocols include plans to live stream sporting events so fans can watch from the comfort and safety of their homes.
Following:Eddy County residents protest postponement of fall sports
Carlsbad High School made the decision to set up two Pixellot streaming camera services before the postponement of sporting events until 2021 by the New Mexico Activities Association. One camera will broadcast events from the Cave, the main high school gymnasium, and the other will be located at Ralph Boyer Caveman Stadium.
“It’s a single unit with multiple lenses,” said assistant athletic director Ryan Galindo. “It’s also calibrated to follow the direction of the ball. It’s designed to follow the game. There is also an angle that shows the scoreboard at all times.”
Galindo said he hasn’t figured out how to add a commentary track, so for now the plan is to just allow ambient noise from the gym, including player chatter on the floor and whistles from the referees.
Because the CHS will not have cameras in the two gymnasiums, Galindo plans to hold each match or match inside the cave rather than in the auxiliary gymnasium. He said it would allow fans, family and friends to watch college freshmen and juniors games in addition to college contests.
Loving Athletic director Doug Santo also planned to use a Pixellot camera or work with Hudl streaming.
“We tried to film some practices on YouTube to see the quality,” Santo said. “But we’re going to go with Hudl or (Pixellot) because of the video quality.”
Games filmed from Pixellot will be shown on the NFHS website and will require a subscription.
For years, Artesia High has had all of its games streamed through KSVP. Artesia athletic director Cooper Henderson has confirmed that AHS will continue to provide this service through KSVP broadcasts.
Matthew Asher can be reached at 575-628-5524, mtasher@currentargus.com or @Caveman_Masher on Twitter. Support award-winning local journalism. Subscribe to Current-Argus today.
