The Great Lakes Valley Conference announced Monday afternoon that a majority of fall sports will be postponed until the spring semester. Truman State University football, men’s and women’s soccer, and volleyball teams will not compete in the fall.
The GLVC’s Council of Presidents stated on its website that the decision was made in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The men’s and women’s cross country teams, however, are still permitted to compete in the 2020 GLVC Cross Country Championships, which will take place in late October. The golf and tennis teams are allowed to compete in their non-championship seasons as they normally would this fall.
Truman Athletics Director Jerry Wollmering said the decision is disappointing and frustrating for student athletes and the campus community. Not only are student athletes not competing, Wollmering said the decision is an indication that many campus activities aren’t completely back to normal.
Wollmering explained the postponement of fall sports seasons will likely affect traditional festivities surrounding the sports, like Homecoming. Because of the GLVC decision, there are also some seniors graduating in December without a senior season.
Wollmering said he is looking into whether the teams can train, condition and practice as they usually would in the non championship segment of their season. Wollmering and the athletic administrators will use the fall season to organize and plan for the busier spring season.
The GLVC announcement also states that winter sports, including men’s and women’s swimming and diving, and men’s and women’s indoor track and field, will compete as scheduled. The GLVC established Oct. 1 as the deadline to determine when men’s and women’s basketball and wrestling will start.
The announcement states that the decisions regarding which sports can be played and which ones should be postponed are based on guidance from the National Collegiate Athletics Association COVID-19 Advisory Panel and the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine COVID-19 Working Group. These groups determine which sports are low contact and low risk.
The GLVC is the 11th NCAA Division II conference to postpone fall competition, while the NCAA has yet to determine the final status of its fall national championships.