CCCAA Board of Directors votes to cancel remainder of 2020 spring sports season
Photo by: Mario Cendejas
By MARTY JAMES
The California Community College Athletic Association, the governing body for intercollegiate athletics in the state, announced Thursday, March 19 that its Board of Directors voted unanimously to cancel the remainder of the 2020 spring sports season.
In an announcement on the state's website, www.cccaasports.org, the CCCAA also said, "the spring season of competition for approximately 9,500 student-athletes will be restored and face-to-face recruiting and recruiting-related travel is being prohibited immediately but will be re-evaluated next month."
As a result, Napa Valley College's baseball and men's golf intercollegiate seasons are now over.
"The CCCAA … postponed the spring seasons last week due to concerns over COVID-19 with hopes of possibly returning to competition. However, with campuses throughout the state closed and most classes taking place online, and with the uncertainty about when conditions will improve, the Board of Directors voted to cancel the spring sports seasons," the state organization announced in a report on its website.
COVID-19 is the infectious disease caused by the most recently discovered coronavirus, according to the World Health Organization at www.who.int.
The CCCAA not only oversees and governs athletics for 109 member institutions, but provides oversight of within the California Community College System as well, according to the organization's website.
"We understand that it's not an ideal situation," Napa Valley College Athletic Director Jerry Dunlap said on Friday, March 20. "But everybody throughout the United States is going through the same thing. We're just going to keep moving forward, keep waiting to hear from the NCAA, the NAIA, and the CCCAA, about what our future holds.
"But it looks like our spring athletes will retain their eligibility for one more year. If they were a freshman this past spring, they will be a freshman next year. The sophomores will have that opportunity to stay at their respective community college for another year. We don't know exactly what that's going to look like, with some of our stronger sophomore athletes potentially moving on to the four-year institutions.
"But the positive thing is they will more than likely have three years at the next level, which will be really good for them."
The NVC men's golf team, with a very talented lineup, was having one of its best seasons in years – first-place finishes in three Big 8 Conference tournaments, a win at the Chardonnay Invitational, and a win at the Rancho Murieta Shootout.
The Storm placed second in its final tournament, on March 11 at Rancho Murieta Country Club's North Course in Sacramento County.
Coach Bob Freschi said he is "saddened" by the recent cancellation of the Storm's golf season.
"I feel for our players who were vying for a conference championship," said Freschi. "We understand these are unprecedented times and will do what's best for the health of our players and staff. We had a great first half of our season and created many joyful memories."
Freschi added that the players understand what is at stake.
"They don't want it to end this way," said Freschi. "They were all appreciative and thankful to spend the half-season competing for the Storm."
The NVC baseball team played its last game on March 21 and dropped a 21-2 Bay Valley Conference decision to College of Marin-Kentfield at Storm Field.
Coach Dan Parker said the freshmen players gained a great deal of experience – in particular, competing at a level that they had never been at before.
"We really did have a lot of freshmen doing new stuff," said Parker. "Those guys were really starting to learn at a high level.
"I thought at-bats got a lot better. Our defense got a lot better. And our pitching got a lot better. Everything was kind of just starting to click a little bit.
"Now those guys get to come back with almost a season under their belt, and they're coming back as freshmen. Obviously, just keeping guys healthy is important."
Individual players will have some tough decisions to make – whether to stay at NVC or transfer on to four-year colleges, based on their academic situations.
"It's just going to force people into making decisions that they just really weren't going to have to make before," said Parker. "I think we're just trying to go with the moment right now, trying to figure out, OK, more than anything else, what's next.
"We're going to see at the end of the year."
NVC began online courses on March 19. There are no students or in-person classes being taught on campus at the time. This schedule goes through April 5. NVC's spring break is April 6-12.
"As long as everybody is staying safe, that's all we can hope for," said Dunlap. "Everybody is doing what they can. I think we're all doing the correct thing. Hopefully, down the road, everybody will look back and say this was the smart decision, that not only that the state made, but our institution made as well."
Dunlap said he has been in meetings most of the week. He was on a two-hour conference call with the Bay Valley Conference and CCCAA Interim Executive Director Jennifer Cardone. Dunlap has also been in communication with NVC staff members through email.
"Jennifer has been awesome at getting information to the institutions in a timely manner," said Dunlap. "She's extremely accommodating to answering questions and replying to our email and giving us feedback and any guidance that we need."
Cardone said: "College athletics are facing unprecedented circumstances and we are doing our best to address the concerns that have come about as a result. Undoubtedly, it's a challenging time but student-athletes are at the center of our focus as well as what's in the best interest of our institutions."
Stressing the importance of academics to the student-athletes, now that NVC has switched over to the online instruction, is key, said Dunlap.
"There could be some stipulations put in place on what that looks like, with some of their eligibility rules. But I think the majority of our athletes will be fine," said Dunlap.
NVC announced on March 13, on its athletic department website, nvcstorm.com, that it postponed intercollegiate competition and practices indefinitely, in accordance with the CCCAA decision.
In its announcement, the CCCAA said: "The Board of Directors subsequently voted that nearly 9,500 student-athletes who competed this spring will have their season of competition restored, provided they had not quit or been cut from their teams prior to the seasons being postponed by the CCCAA on March 12. The restoration only applies to the student-athletes' status within the CCCAA. The NCAA, NAIA and other collegiate governing bodies are currently addressing similar issues and the CCCAA will continue to work with them to help student-athletes who wish to eventually transfer. In light of the state and federal guidelines related to COVID-19, the CCCAA has also instituted a temporary ban on face-to-face recruiting – and any travel related to recruiting – until April 15 at which time the CCCAA will review and decide whether to continue the ban or not. It's similar to recruiting restrictions put in place by other collegiate governing bodies."
The CCCAA also announced in its report that nontraditional seasons and practices outside of regularly scheduled classes are canceled through June 30, 2020.
The CCCAA Men's and Women's Basketball State Championships, scheduled for Golden Eagle Arena at West Hills College Lemoore, were canceled due to concerns over COVID-19, the state organization said on March 12.
Furthermore, the CCCAA announced that its 2020 Annual Convention, March 31-April 3 in Ontario, has been canceled due to concerns with COVID-19.
* Marty James is a freelance writer who makes his home in Napa. He retired on June 4, 2019 after spending 40 years as a sports writer, sports editor and executive sports editor for the Napa Valley Register, a daily newspaper in Napa County. He is a 1979 graduate of Sacramento State and a member of the California Golf Writers & Broadcasters Association, Associated Press Sports Editors, and California Prep Sports Media Association. He was inducted into the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Hall of Fame in 2016 and the Vintage High School Athletic Hall of Fame in September of 2019.