The West Coast Conference Presidents' Council announced on Thursday the delay of fall competition in all conference sports due to the COVID-19 pandemic. No WCC programs will participate in any competition prior to Sept. 24, 2020.
The decision includes the traditional fall seasons in men's and women's cross country, men's and women's soccer and women's volleyball. Baseball, beach volleyball, men's and women's golf, women's rowing, softball and men's and women's tennis – all of which are traditional spring season sports – will not participate in a fall competition prior to Sept. 24.
“While difficult, this is a necessary move to ensure we are providing the safest environment for our programs to compete,” said West Coast Conference Commissioner Gloria Nevarez. “We have worked on plans for a variety of circumstances and believe, with our actions guided by information and science, this is the responsible decision at this time. We will continue to evaluate our best path moving forward with the health and safety of everyone involved as the guiding principle of our discussions.”
BYU currently competes in the WCC in the fall in the following sports: volleyball, men's and women's cross country and women's soccer.
In-person voluntary and mandatory athletically related activities outside of competition may be conducted at the institution's discretion in accordance with NCAA regulations and local health and safety guidelines. The WCC continues to discuss options for fall sports and any further action will be shared at a later time.
“As we make plans for our fall athletic seasons, we appreciate the dialog and attention the WCC has gone through to review the variety of circumstances at member schools and consider the safety of our student-athletes,” BYU Director of Athletics Tom Holmoe said. “We are in the process of working on our fall sports schedules given the parameters provided by the WCC and appreciate the flexibility to schedule non-conference competition with other universities.”
