Eastern Nazarene Announces Decision on Fall Sports

After careful consideration, Eastern Nazarene College Director of Athletics Dr. Brad Zarges has announced that the College's fall athletic teams (men's and women's cross country, men's golf, men's and women's soccer, women's volleyball, and women's tennis) will not compete in intercollegiate athletics during the Fall 2020 semester. The announcement comes on the heels of the New England Collegiate Conference's decision Wednesday to suspend conference play during the upcoming fall semester due to the health and safety concerns surrounding COVID-19.

This information was relayed to student-athletes in the following email from Zarges.

Dear ENC Community,

After significant discussion with conference leadership, the President's Council of the New England Collegiate Conference has voted to suspend intercollegiate play during the upcoming fall semester. While the continued disruption of the normal rhythms within athletics is frustrating, our focus throughout has been on the health and safety of our student-athletes and staff. As we follow the world of intercollegiate athletics, there have been numerous conferences and schools making the same choice, with an expectation that most, if not all of NCAA sports will be suspended this fall.

The decision by the NECC effectively eliminates official competition this fall for all 15 of our sport programs. However, the NECC is committed to offering league schedules for fall sports during the spring semester. The NCAA is also considering adjustments to the traditional calendar of sports.

The athletic department staff has already started discussing creative ways to offer an enhanced period of training, practices, and intra-campus competition this semester. Regardless of the disruption, athletics has been and will remain an important part of the educational experience for our students. While the year in sports will be different than previous years, we still plan to offer meaningful developmental opportunities even as we continue to navigate these uncharted waters.

We are thankful to be part of an educational community like Eastern Nazarene College, where athletics is integrated into campus life and is valued as part of our student-athletes' journeys. For all of our students, we look forward to seeing you on campus once again this coming August!

Go Lions!

Brad Zarges, Ph.D.

Vice President of Enrollment

Director of Athletics

Eastern Nazarene College