NWAC postpones the start of college sports

MOSES LAKE — College sports won’t start on time in the Northwest Athletic Conference.

The NWAC released return-to-play guidelines on Thursday, which included an update that the governing body’s executive board approved a plan to move the majority of fall sports to winter and spring quarters.

The press release stated that the NWAC office partnered with NWAC Sports Medicine Committee to develop a comprehensive plan of health and safety protocol recommendations for member colleges to implement for practice, competition and championship events. The full guidelines and health and safety protocols can be found at www.nwacsports.com/COVID19 and www.nwacsports.com/SportsMedicine.

Men’s and women’s cross country and men’s and women’s golf will commence in the fall on a reduced and modified schedule; Big Bend Community College in Moses Lake doesn’t offer those programs. The other NWAC sports will begin in winter and spring quarters of 2021 with reduced schedules, the release explained.

Big Bend’s only fall sport is volleyball, which is now scheduled to begin in late February. Men’s and women’s basketball is scheduled to start in mid-January, with baseball and softball following in mid-February.