by Alan Hoskins, KCKCC
Kansas City Kansas Community College will be without any competitive sports this fall.
By a vote of the membership, the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) postponed all fall and winter athletic events and moved them to next spring because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“I am in full support of the decision made by the NJCAA leadership,” KCKCC Athletic Director Tony Tompkins said. “They did a great of gathering feedback from the various regions. I believe this is the best approach for our student-athletes to have the opportunity to compete and finish their seasons.
“Things are going to look a lot different this season but I am very optimistic we can still provide a great atmosphere for our athletes to be successful both academically and athletically,” he said.
The vote affects six KCKCC sports – men’s and women’s soccer, golf, volleyball and men’s and women’s basketball. Baseball, softball and golf events are annually on the spring schedule.
Athletes will be allowed to practice in all sports during the fall and officials in the Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference (KJCCC) are looking into the possibility of a limited number of scrimmages between conference members.
“We are expecting the KJCCC to finalize decisions about scrimmages at our meeting in early August,” Tompkins said. “There’s a wide range of recommendations from across the state but we are all in agreement that the health and safety of our athletes is our top priority.”
All KCKCC athletes will have daily screenings and additional preventive measures will be put in place by Aug. 1 to provide a safe environment for those involved. The parameters for each of the sports with dates subject to change by NJCAA and KJCCC guidelines:
Soccer – 60 days of fall practice between Aug. 15-Nov. 15. Spring practice permitted starting March 15 with a starting date of April 2. No more than 14 games allowed and all tournament play must be completed by May 24. Nationals championships will begin June 2.
Volleyball – Fall practice allowed between Aug. 15-Nov. 15. Spring practice may begin Jan. 11 with competition to being May. 29. Play will be limited to a maximum of 21 dates with a completion date of April 3. The national championships will be held April 15-17.
Basketball – Practices allowed between Sept. 15-Dec. 15. The number of spring games will be limited to 22 with practice beginning Jan. 11 and competition Jan. 22. All play must be completed by April 11 with national championships beginning April 19.
Golf – Fall practices allowed between Sept. 5-Nov. 15. Spring practice can begin Jan. 10 and competition Jan. 22. National championship will be play May 11-14.
Baseball – Fall practices between Sept. 5-Nov. 15. Spring schedule will be limited to a maximum of 56 games with practices to begin Jan. 10 and competition Jan. 22. All competition must be completed by May 23 with the NJCAA DI World Series to begin May 29.
Softball – 60 days of fall practice allowed between Sept. 5-Nov. 15. Spring practice may begin Jan. 10 with competition starting Jan. 22. Schedule limited to 27 playing dates with all competition ended by May 19. The NCAA Division II national tournament will be played May 25-29.