Over spring break, The Fountain Hills Unified School District athletics program received a surprise when the Arizona Interscholastic Association (AIA) notified them that Fountain Hills would be move from the 3A Division to 2A.

Ultimately, the move didn’t happen and Fountain Hills will remain in Division 3A after FHUSD Athletic Director, Willie Dudley, petitioned to stay in put.

Dudley consulted with players, parents and coaches about what to do when they learned about the AIA’s change.

While there was some talk about accepting the move to a lower division, Dudley said the decision to petition to keep Fountain Hills in 3A came down to one factor.

“Really, it was evaluating the competition in 2A to the competition in 3A and looking at the total year for the sports,” Dudley said. “Overall, the competition week in, week out would not have been as competitive and our thought is that we have been able to stay competitive in Division 3A with enrollment that is similar to what it is now.”

Dudley added that along with losing competiveness, the move in divisions would also mean that JV and freshmen teams could go weeks without games.

While the move might be inevitable in a few years, Fountain Hills athletics will stay Division 3A for the time being.