UPDATE 7/2/2020, 11:00 a.m.

Please see the announcement below from the Ohio Athletic Conference.  

OAC Announces Fall Sports COVID Response Plan
(July 2, 2020)

The Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC), the nation's third oldest collegiate athletic league, has announced plans for fall sports in 2020.  The Conference is excited about providing a bounty of athletic opportunities for student-athletes at its 10 member campuses.

The OAC has adopted the NCAA three-phase Resocialization Plan on campus, 14 days in each Phase One and Two with varying days per sport in Phase Three.

Fall competition in all sports will begin September 19 and the league will play Conference-only competition in football, soccer and volleyball, while permitting cross country, golf and tennis to play outside competition.

"The health and safety of our student-athletes is of utmost concern," said OAC Commissioner Tim Gleason, "as well as our campuses and the communities they are in.  We believe we have reached a great balance of health and safety while at the same time providing a vibrant sports schedule for the student-athletes."

To that end, the OAC is preparing schedules that maximize participation opportunities that lead to Conference championships and subsequent NCAA participation.

As a result, many of the 2020 fall athletic schedules currently listed here on BergAthletics.com will change.  Once finalized, the completed 2020 schedules will be publicized to the general public and sent to members of each team.  

Additionally, Heidelberg University announced its Responsible Restart plans on Thursday.  All students are encouraged to read through the restart plan.  

 

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UPDATE 3/18/2020, 11:15 a.m.  

The 2020 Siggy Awards will not be held in person.  Instead, a live webcast of the event will be made available (date TBD)  The 2020 Siggy Awards ballot is available through March 25.
 

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UPDATE 3/12/2020, 8:30 p.m. 

AUSTINTOWN, Ohio -- On Thursday afternoon, the Ohio Athletic Conference released the following statement:  

In an effort to protect the health and safety of all of our students and the communities we serve, the Presidents Council of the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) has voted to cancel all 2020 spring sports seasons, effective March 16 through the remainder of the academic year. This includes all athletically-related activities as defined by the NCAA. In addition, all meetings, practices and other off-season activities for other sports have also been canceled. 

While we recognize the profound disappointment that will be felt by the many student-athletes, parents, fans and coaches, the ongoing spread and uncertainty of COVID-19 have made the continuation of athletic activities untenable. 

Individual OAC institutions will decide the NCAA championship participation status and remaining practice/meetings needs of winter teams and student-athletes who have qualified. In addition, the Conference deeply regrets having to cancel the Clyde Lamb Awards Banquet scheduled for May. 

The Conference will appeal to the NCAA to re-gain a season of eligibility and an extra semester to participate for all spring student-athletes who have participated thus far at OAC member institutions. 

In addition, Heidelberg Athletic Director Matt Palm announced the following updates:

The NCAA Division III Indoor Track & Field Championships and the NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships have been canceled by the NCAA on Thursday afternoon.  

The baseball and softball teams are in the middle of their Florida trips.  Baseball will play once on Friday before flying home on Saturday.  Softball plans to play all remaining games.  

The rest of Heidelberg's spring teams do not have contests scheduled prior to the March 16 date.