Winter NESCAC Athletics Cancelled Due to COVID

Anna Bauer ’23

Sports Editor

This past Thursday, Oct. 8, Trinity Director of Athletics Drew Galbraith released an email explaining that NESCAC Presidents have decided to cancel the “NESCAC-sponsored competition and championships in winter sports for the 2020-21 season.”  This announcement followed the cancellation of the Fall 2020 athletic season for the NESCAC, a decision seen throughout other athletic conferences in the nation.

Disappointing and breaking the hearts of many of winter athletes at Trinity, this announcement leaves the NESCAC community wondering what comes next. 

In his email, Galbraith makes clear, however, that though no team will be able to win a NESCAC championship this season, this is not the end for winter sports. 

Institutions within the NESCAC are not restricted from creating their own individual plans for winter sports competitions and practices. As a result, other institutions who choose to compete could compete with each other and the Trinity Athletic Department is trying its best to be one of these schools. 

Furthermore, because they know how important competition is in sports, the Athletic Department is tirelessly searching for ways to allow winter student-athletes to compete. The only catch is that whatever decision is made must follow Trinity, the State of Connecticut, and NCAA guidelines. 

As revealed early in the year, winter sports were supposed to begin practices on Oct. 15, however, given Trinity’s alert orange, that start date is likely postponed alongside all fall and spring sports practices and lifts. In other words, when one resumes, it seems that they all will. Nevertheless, the intention for winter sports remains the same and, assuming students remain on campus, winter sport athletes will practice until the end of the fall semester, Nov. 15 as final exams for 10-week courses will be occurring from Nov. 16 to 20. 

Following this, winter student-athletes are expected to return to campus in early January for quarantine, testing, and a return to athletics. 

While this remains the goal, the Athletic Department is still trying to determine what other things need to be done in order for students to safely return to campus and resume practice. 

At the end of his email, Galbraith told winter athletes that they will have an update by the end of October regarding the structure of the winter season, so stay tuned with the Tripod to keep up to date!