Limestone & SAC Moving Fall 2020 Athletics To Spring 2021 Due To COVID-19 Pandemic

The South Atlantic Conference (SAC) announced on Friday, Aug. 7, that its Presidents Council has made the decision to postpone the start of all scheduled competition for the 2020 fall sports season until the spring 2021 semester. This decision affects seven sponsored sports that traditionally play in the fall.

The SAC Presidents Council, which had previously delayed the start of football, men’s and women’s soccer, field hockey, men’s and women’s cross country, and women’s volleyball until September 26, felt it was in the best interests of the student-athletes, coaches, administrators, fans, and campus communities in general to postpone until the spring of 2021 due to the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Much like the decision we had to make back in March to cancel spring sports, the decision to postpone fall sports was very difficult for our administration,” SAC Commissioner Patrick Britz stated. “But the health and safety of our student-athletes is our number one priority, and we feel the decision to postpone our fall seasons is the best for their safety and well-being, and it gives us the best opportunity to play.”

The start of the winter seasons, which includes men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s indoor track and field, and men’s wrestling currently remain unchanged. A decision on the start of winter competition will be made at a later date. The SAC leadership team will continue to assess NCAA, federal, state, and local developments and will provide updated revisions as further information becomes available.

The NCAA Division II Presidents Council canceled all seven of its fall championships earlier this week due to the operational, logistical, and financial challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic. That decision was made after the NCAA Board of Governors directed each division to make a decision on its fall sport championships and required all member institutions to apply updated resocialization principles.