GRANVILLE, Ohio-- The North Coast Athletic Conference has made the difficult decision to cancel conference play, including conference championships, for the winter season. Despite the NCAC's decision to not proceed with traditional conference play and championships institutions are free to make individual decisions regarding outside competition for the winter sports season and Denison will be pursuing this option vigorously.
 
"The coaches and I are already reaching out to our NCAC peers as well as those in other nearby conferences to gauge interest and availability," said Associate Vice President and Director of Athletics, Nan Carney-DeBord.
 
"Our goal is to secure as many games and meets as possible with institutions that share not only our commitment to sport but the precautions necessary to maintain the health and safety of our student body."
 
This fall, Denison enabled athletes to participate in practices and training starting very early in the semester and by mid-fall was able to allow intrasquad scrimmages. Denison's coaches and staff will proceed into the winter sports season with the same dedication and determination to providing valuable and rewarding experiences to our athletes.
 
The varsity sports impacted by this decision are men's and women's basketball, men's and women's indoor track & field, and men's and women's swimming & diving. Denison's varsity women's fencing team and the men's and women's squash teams already compete outside of the North Coast Athletic Conference umbrella.
 
Below you will find a list of frequently asked questions provided by the North Coast Athletic Conference.

 
What will participation look like for winter sports?
Individual return-to-play protocols will be in place at each member institution to allow for an athletic experience with or without competition within the parameters of federal, state, institutional, conference and NCAA guidance. Institutions will make their own decisions around competition against teams within, or outside of, the NCAC based on those parameters.

Regardless of competition, teams will be able to practice and gather this winter under the supervision of their coaches, as long as they comply with all safety standards in place across their respective campuses. 

The conference will continue to plan ways to create positive interactions for our student-athletes, coaches and staffs with programming, leadership and professional development opportunities and fun features about members of our NCAC family. 

Though the season looks different from any other, we will continue to partner with our campus and conference student-athlete advisory committees and our coaches to explore ways for our student-athletes to engage in their passion.

Will NCAA Championships for Division III winter and spring sports be conducted?
The NCAA continues to plan for winter and spring sport championships. Adjustments to selection dates, brackets and field sizes and contest sites are underway so as to safely conduct championship events, if conditions allow.

It is expected that the NCAA threshold for conducting championships in any Division will be that at least 50 percent of the teams competing in any sport must conduct a regular season for a championship to be held.

When will decisions be made about spring and fall sports competition?
The NCAC statement specifically applies to any conference competition for the winter championship sports. Decisions about spring and or/fall sport competitions will be made at a later date as more information becomes available. 

Any competition would likely be prefaced by a period of resocialization and acclimatization. We will monitor public health guidance and continue our work with local, state and federal health authorities, as well as the NCAA and other national medical and sports organizations. 
Even though we continue to diligently work to find ways to conduct competition in the coming semester, it is important to keep in mind current realities as well, including but not limited to the following: 

1. If current public health conditions continue or worsen throughout the upcoming months, the opportunities for competition will remain as they currently exist. 

2. If public health conditions improve to permit more robust competition in the spring semester, it will be important to remember athletics will continue to look different as various resources such as staffing, court/field space, availability of lighting, and weather, will create significant challenges as we try to maximize opportunities for sports over the course of one semester.

3. Public health conditions may vary from location to location at any given time.

4. Decisions around athletic competition and activity may depend on the defined transmission risk levels presented by each sport.

Will NCAA Championships for Division III fall sports be conducted?
The NCAA canceled fall sport championships for Division II and III.

Will practicing affect my NCAA eligibility?
No. For Division III student-athletes, participation in workouts, meetings or practices in their usual season during the fall or spring semester will not trigger the use of a season of participation. 

Additionally, the NCAA recently issued a blanket waiver that states that Division III student-athletes will not be charged with participation for the 2020-21 season if their team can complete only 50 percent or less of the sport's maximum contests/dates of competition due to the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The NCAA also issued a blanket statement stating that a student-athlete will receive a two semester extension of eligibility (towards their 10-semester total) if they are unable to participate due to COVID-19 or if their team completes 50% or less of that sport's maximum contests/dates of competition. Visit the NCAA website for the full announcement.