COVID Cancels Fall Sports for Good
Over our long winter break the fate of our athletes and weather they will have the chance to play the sports they love in a year taken by the pandemic was decided. In late January, all eight of the MASCAC presidents officially made the decision to cancel all fall indoor and outdoor activities for the second school semester. This does not ruin all hope of competition as this just officially eliminates any potential of league play as schools can schedule non-conference competition that can be organized between two schools. “The MASCAC office has been meeting regularly with the presidents, athletic directors, athletic trainers and other essential staff to consider ways we can bring our student-athletes back to the playing field safely while adhering to all state, federal and NCAA guidelines,” said MASCAC Commissioner Angela Baumann.
The loss of games does not mean the white flag is being waved on the athletic year as the NCAA and all MASCAC schools have provided training exercises and team activities to keep the student athletes engaged while learning remotely. Athletes will also not loose a year of eligibility and will be able to return next year to continue competition. With issues between athletes who live off campus traveling to train, the conference and schools are still working on ways for team to train together. Having to maintain social distance, it is obviously harder to work outside with the cold temperatures so great action has been done by BSU as they have transformed the backside of Kelly Gymnasium to a weight room for recruitment and team exercises. With health and safety of student athletes being a priority for the conference, a decision on if spring sports will be played on time will not come until later in February. It is truly a shame for not just fall athletes here at BSU but all over the country as they know have some motivation to fuel them to come back even stronger in the fall. The MASCAC is in its 50th season and while they cannot celebrate in person the conference is doing trivia and other engaging activities online to give fans content despite no competition. Keep training Bears, as the best is yet to come and soon enough you will be competing with not only your teammates but your closest friends soon enough.
