PARKERSBURG — With several injunctions issued in the past week, the West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission made a move Thursday which would bring to a resolution the state football playoff tournament which was postponed earlier this week due to ongoing litigation.

As the petitioner, the WVSSAC filed with the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals a petition for writ of prohibition and a request granting expedited relief.

“We filed the writ with the Supreme Court, now we are at the mercy of their timeline,” WVSSAC Associate Director Wayne Ryan said. “Obviously, we are hoping for a ruling in the near future. There is no guarantee.”

In the past week, two injunctions against WVSSAC were issued by county circuit court judges — one on Saturday by Judge J.D. Beane in Wood County and a second late Monday in Mason County by Judge Anita Ashley.

An injunction filed by the Wood County Board of Education was made on behalf of Parkersburg High School, Parkersburg South High School and Williamstown High School because of a discrepancy with ratings and playoff points.

The second injunction, which was pending as football coaches attended playoff meetings Sunday at the WVSSAC building, ordered a pair of play-in games Saturday.

Those games involve Class AAA schools Point Pleasant and Hampshire, who were bumped out of the postseason when the ratings were re-configured following the injunction handed down out of Wood County.

Again citing the appeal to the Supreme Court of Appeals, “The Circuit Court Order of Wood County, West Virginia’s order exceeds its legitimate powers and is clearly erroneous as a matter of law. The act by the Circuit Court here is an often-repeated error and manifests persistent disregard to the WVSSAC’s discretion in administering its rules and regulations.

“Succinctly put, noting West Virginia jurisprudence ‘supports the … premise that courts are permitted to second guess the manner in which the (WV)SSAC applies its rules.'”

With ongoing litigation, the WVSSAC on Tuesday made the decision to postpone the state football playoffs.

Until the Supreme Court issues a ruling, the WVSSAC is acknowledging the Class AAA play-in games as ruled by the circuit court in Mason County. At 1 p.m. on Saturday. Capital plays Hampshire at Bridgeport High School and Point Pleasant plays St. Albans at Hurricane High School.

According to Thursday’s appeal to the Supreme Court, it comes “as a result of the WVSSAC’s practical impossibility of complying with both orders, it was necessary that the West Virginia State Football Playoffs be postponed. In order for the West Virginia State Football playoffs to begin play, it is necessary that the conflicting orders be resolved so that the WVSSAC can be in compliance with all legal mandates when the playoffs resume.

“Each week the playoffs are postponed constitutes an irreparable harm to the WVSSAC member schools participating in the playoffs. Without immediate adjudication by this Court, the WVSSAC West Virginia State Football playoff cannot be played without violating one or another of the Circuit Court’s injunction orders.

The appeal petition concludes, “For the foregoing reasons, as the West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission respectfully requests that this court grant it this Motion for Expedited Relief and grant such other and further relief as the Court deems just and proper.”

Beyond the two-play in games, the state football playoffs in West Virginia continue to be considered postponed.

“We are in postpone mode until a ruling by the supreme court,” Ryan said. “We are hoping for within 72 hours, but that’s all we know. We are waiting to hear which rating system we will use. The one we had all year or that ruled by the Wood County injunction.”