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NCAA reduces number of games for Division II schools

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There will be fewer chances to watch the sports teams at California University next season.

The NCAA has trimmed the number of competitions and playing dates for Division II schools for the 2020-21 academic year. The Division II Presidents Council recently announced the changes, citing the financial impacts from COVID-19 as the primary reason and said they would be for only one year.

The changes include:

  • Football teams will be allowed to play 10 regular-season games, down from 11 last year. The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference, of which California is a member, will reduce conference games from 10 to nine.
  • In both men’s and women’s soccer, the NCAA voted to reduce regular-season games from 18 to 14.
  • Volleyball matches have been capped at 20 regular-season contests. Last year, California played 27 volleyball matches including 19 in PSAC play.
  • Men’s and women’s basketball will have limits of 22 games. Schools will not be permitted to exempt contests played as part of a conference challenge. The Cal women played 28 regular-season games in 2019-20, including two in the Mountain East/PSAC Challenge. The Cal men also had 28 regular-season games.

The NCAA also changed the limits on competitions in 15 other sports.

The Mountain East Conference, of which West Liberty and Wheeling are members, announced the elimination of non-conference play for its football, men’s and women’s soccer, women’s volleyball and men’s and women’s basketball programs. The PSAC, the largest Division II conference with 18 full-time members, also eliminated non-league games for women’s soccer.

California athletic director Karen Hjerpe said other changes could be coming.

“We’re waiting on the NCAA to make some changes and final decisions,” Hjerpe said. “The presidents for Division II have said they will have decisions by June 30. They could delay the start of the seasons or change the dates for when seasons will end for fall sports.”

Hjerpe said the number of NCAA qualifiers has not changed. With fewer nonconference games being played though, that could benefit those leagues with only one or two strong teams in certain sports. Hjerpe mentioned that records are not the only things that will determine at-large selections to NCAA tournaments.

“There are different criteria that the selection committees look at, such as strength of schedule and the Performance Index Indicator. Records are not going to be the only thing looked at,” she said.

The schedule reductions stem from financial struggles Division II institutions are facing because of the pandemic, the NCAA said on its website. Many institutions, in feedback to the NCAA, stated they will not be able to afford the same level of travel or meet current standards for championships selections or sports sponsorship, even if sports begin as scheduled in the fall semester.

“The financial challenges faced by institutions because of COVID-19 are considerable and, as we prepare for summer and fall, continue to increase,” said Sandra Jordan, chancellor of South Carolina Aiken and chair of the Division II Presidents Council. “The approved reductions strike an important balance of providing schools with scheduling flexibility, maintaining competitive equity within the one-year reductions to minimums and maximums, and continuing to prioritize opportunities for student-athletes to compete in NCAA championships. Periods of national crisis require carefully considered compromise.”

California has not released its fall sports schedules. Hjerpe said that will happen sometime in early July.

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