On Friday, Oct. 2nd, the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) CEO board met to discuss the plans for winter and fall sports.

Fall sports have now been approved to play a conference-only season in Spring, and schedules are currently being set and will be announced within a few weeks. While the NCAA decided to cancel the Division II national championships, the GNAC’s women’s soccer tournament is still set to take place at the end of the season at Western Washington University in Bellingham.

The sports that would have played in the fall began practice two weeks ago, and Men’s Soccer head coach Mark Collings has liked what he’s seen from the team so far. The team is working together with great energy, and are also eager to learn new skills and practice together after being apart for such a long time.

As the season returns in the spring, the team is not only preparing for the beginning of it, but the end as well. For the first time, there will also be an end of season conference tournament for Men’s Soccer.

“I think it’s really important for the development of our program, as through the pandemic, we’ve been trying to push the program forward,” Collings said of the tournament.

In a season that has been so strange, this is one positive change that can help the team stay motivated, and be a replacement for the NCAA Division II championship that was cancelled.

“It will provide some extra meaning for our season this spring,” Collings said.

Plans are still being determined for the end of Volleyball season and possibilities are being explored for the Cross-Country season.

Looking forward to the winter, the board also determined that competition for any sport could not take place until at least January 7, pushing the schedule back about 40 days from November 30.

It was also announced that there will be no Indoor Track Championships this season. The location where the meet was going to take place, at Northwest Nazarene University in Nampa, Idaho, is no longer being used as a Track and Field venue. There were no other viable locations for the event to be held.