COVID-19 caused the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) to take strict measures for upcoming athletic seasons.
The decisions made by the NAIA consisted of temperature checks before every practice, no fans at any indoor events, sanitizing frequently, delay of seasons, only conference games/matches scheduled to be played and championships pushed back.
“The COVID-19 mandates have caused changes for practice as to meeting in smaller groups, and probably more individual workouts for the fall,” said head softball coach, Wes Holly. “Hopefully, we can get in some scrimmages.”
Currently the NAIA has not made any significant changes for spring sports.
The unpredictability of COVID-19 has been a major factor in player morale for softball players. Holly said, “Player morale hasn’t been the same as usual because of the uncertainty of how this pandemic will affect the season.”
The dynamics of the volleyball team have significantly changed too.
“We are taking lots of extra measurements,” said head volleyball coach, Doneva Bays. “We sanitize a lot, we wear masks during warmups and all breaks or when we are just standing in practice, we social distance as much as possible, we do not do huddles or high fives anymore, we take temp checks and surveys every practice and we are more attentive to where we go and who we are around.”
This period of COVID-19 is difficult for volleyball because the indoor nature of this sport means there will be no fans in attendance.
This golf season will look different, but head coach, Tony Wallingford, states, “Our players are excited to have an opportunity to compete this fall.”
“They understand that this is not going to be “normal” in many ways, but are certainly willing to abide by the current precautions in order to play and compete,” Wallingford said.
Updates from the NAIA regarding COVID-19 and student-athletes can be found here.
Headline photo: Basketballs sit in the rack after being sanitized after each use. Photo by Hannah Wyrick.