Adrian, MI – Due to low participation numbers among member schools, NCAA Division III winter championships are canceled for the 2020-21 academic year.
The DIII school in Lenawee County, Adrian College, will not have the opportunity to play in the winter championships for the second straight season. In March, 2020 the two NCAA hockey programs won their conference championships on home ice and punched their tickets to the tournament. Before a single game could be played, the world was turned upside down because of COVID-19… the tournament was canceled. Both programs were determined to play this fall/winter, implementing strict protocols for the safety of coaches, staff, and the players. Schedules were constructed, and both teams were able to schedule more than a handful of games prior to NCHA Conference play.
Before the puck drops this weekend to start the conference slate, the ultimate prize… a National Championship… will not be on the table for two of the top teams in the country. With that being said, there is a title defense on the line for the Bulldogs, as they will fight to keep their conference championship trophies from 2020.
In 2020, the Men’s Basketball team did reach the national tournament, but were eliminated in the first round, prior to the shutdowns caused by the pandemic.
The Division III Administrative Committee, acting on behalf of the Division III Management and Presidents Council, approved the recommendation from the Division III Championships Committee to cancel all winter championships. The committee has been closely monitoring and discussing the membership’s winter sport participation for several months, and it has been providing updates to the councils.
The Championships Committee decision was based on the results of a winter declaration form distributed to members about their intention to compete this season in a capacity that would permit them to meet the minimum contest requirements to be eligible for championship selection by the established selection dates. The declaration form was sent to Division III athletics directors Jan. 19 and completed by 98% of the membership.
The national championships affected are men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s swimming and diving, men’s and women’s indoor track and field, men’s and women’s ice hockey, and wrestling.
During its review of the declaration data, the Championships Committee determined participation numbers in all nine winter sports are well below the established threshold to provide a national championships experience. These established thresholds are 60% for men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s swimming and diving, and men’s and women’s indoor track and field, and 70% for men’s and women’s ice hockey and wrestling.
“Today, we made the difficult decision to cancel our Division III winter championships. While some institutions have been able to safely return to sport, the recent declaration form data show that more than half of our division has not returned to winter sport practice and competition to be in a position for NCAA national championship participation,” said Fayneese Miller, chair of the Presidents Council and president at Hamline. “This was a very difficult decision to make, and we are saddened to do so. However, none of our winter sports meet the Championships Committee’s established thresholds of participation to hold a championship. We are committed to ensuring that our student-athletes have the best possible experience, and, for us, this means having a meaningful number of competitions. We hope this is possible for our spring championship.”
-by Ian Wendt
*Written with media courtesy of ncaa.org*
*Featured image by Mike Dickie*