SOU opts out of CCC schedules, NAIA postseasons in basketball, volleyball & XC
SOU Sports Information
ASHLAND – Southern Oregon University has opted out of its commitment to upcoming Cascade Collegiate Conference schedules and NAIA national postseason competition in basketball, cross country and volleyball, SOU Director of Athletics
Matt Sayre announced Thursday, a decision that corresponds with a rise in COVID-19 cases at the local, state and national levels.
The CCC basketball schedule, already delayed once, begins on Jan. 8, though there is no indication a change in state guidelines that have prevented full-contact practice and competition is imminent. The CCC volleyball schedule, which was moved from the fall, opens in late January. And the cross country schedule, also on a revised timeline, builds up to CCC and national championship meets that overlap with the outdoor track and field season.
National postseason competitions for all three sports would require travel to the Midwest, another consideration in the decision.
"The health and well-being of our student-athletes and staff take top priority for us, and we also have a responsibility to do right by the local community that supports us," Sayre said. "In the light of the continued COVID-19 surge in our region we feel alignment with a conference and NAIA schedule is unrealistic and unsafe at this time. We will continue to look for opportunities to allow our volleyball and basketball student-athletes to compete when and where it is safe to do so. Our outstanding distance runners can maintain hope that a spring outdoor track season will remain viable."
The Raider basketball and volleyball programs will seek alternatives under safer conditions to play and travel within the region later in the spring. In accordance with a recently-passed NAIA rule stating that fall and winter student-athletes will not be charged a season of competition no matter the schedule, they would be allowed to compete against NCAA and junior college teams in addition to other NAIA teams. SOU's cross country athletes, meanwhile, will turn their attention to outdoor track and field.
Jackson County, of which Ashland is a part, is currently considered by the state at "extreme risk" of coronavirus transmission and therefore faces Oregon's most stringent restrictions. Transmission rates are significantly higher in several out-of-state counties where CCC schools are located, including those in Idaho and Montana.
As of now, SOU's football, soccer, softball and track and field seasons will go on as scheduled, with the earliest starting in February. Wrestling, like basketball, is a winter contact sport that would under normal circumstances be in midseason but to this point has been affected by no-contact guidelines. Unlike basketball, SOU's wrestling teams are not beholden to a set conference schedule and will hold out hope that conditions improve in time for the postseason.
"Our ultimate purpose is to help our student-athletes attain their academic degrees and to keep them safe and moving towards that goal," Sayre said. "Competition this year would be a real bonus on top of that, and we'll continue to evaluate that potential."
Like the Fall term, the majority of courses at SOU will be delivered remotely during the Winter term.
Added CCC Commissioner Robert Cashell: "The COVID-19 pandemic continues to affect each institution and community differently, and we certainly respect SOU's decision. None of these choices come easy, but as a conference we fully support the need for campus leadership to do what they feel is best as we all continue to navigate the situation."