Holy Cross won't have fall sports

Photo | Grant Welker Holy Cross athletics gear for sale inside the college's bookstore

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College of the Holy Cross, the only Division 1 college athletics program in Central Massachusetts, won't hold fall sports in light of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

The school's athletics conference, the Pennsylvania-based Patriot League, said Monday it won't hold fall sports and has yet to decide on winter and spring sports. Member schools may still allow student athletes opportunities for training, depending on health and safety conditions.

Holy Cross has previously said it will hold fall classes on campus this fall but will finish the semester remotely after Thanksgiving, including for finals. Holy Cross plans to combine in-person and online courses, starting the semester Sept. 1 on campus but eliminating the traditional fall break and sending students home for the semester before Thanksgiving.

The Patriot League's decision follows the same by the Ivy League to cancel fall sports because of the pandemic. Among the largest athletic conferences nationally, the Big Ten and Pac-12 have said they'll play football — a major revenue-generator, especially at the biggest programs — only within their conferences this fall.

"The collegiate athletics experience at all Patriot League institutions is valuable to fulfilling our educational and developmental missions, and the league recognizes that any degree of non-competition this fall is deeply disappointing to our student-athletes, coaches, and fans," the Patriot League said in a statement. "However, the health and safety of our campuses and communities must be our highest priority."

In addition to Holy Cross, the Patriot League also includes American University in Washington, D.C.; Boston University; Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pa.; Colgate University in Hamilton, N.Y.; Lafayette College in Easton, Pa.; Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa.; Loyola University Maryland in Baltimore; the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, N.Y.; and the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md.