AU cross-country teams will have a fall sports season

By Carlos Rodriguez |Sports editorThe Peach Belt Conference announced Friday morning, Aug. 21, its decision to allow cross-country, golf and tennis teams to start their seasons this fall.Meanwhile, volleyball and soccer will be delayed until the spring semester.Competition for the sports being allowed to play is still delayed until Oct. 1.“The Peach Belt Board of Directors are working to balance our desire to provide student-athletes with opportunities to compete in low-contact sports, and our desire to do all in our power to provide a safe environment and to mitigate the spread of the COVID-19 virus,” said Sandra Jordan, Chancellor of the University of South Carolina Aiken and president of the PBC Board of Directors. “Each institutional leader in our conference is well aware of both the risks and opportunities during these unprecedented times, and will continue to respond to the NCAA requirements and national best practices as we make decisions.”PBC schools are not required to compete and can make the decision whether they’ll allow their teams to compete.This decision applies to Augusta University’s cross-country, tennis, and volleyball teams as the golf teams don’t compete under the PBC and are housed in NCAA Division I.The PBC announced that cross-country teams will be able to compete in three regular-season meets, followed by the conference championship that will take place sometime in November. Coach Adam Ward is still in the process of finalizing that schedule.Ward returns a strong men's team that won the PBC last fall, finished second in the regionals and ninth in the nationals (the best-ever performance by a Jaguar team in the NCAA Division II championships). Jacob Poston finished second in the regionals and 48th in the nationals. Poston is a senior this year.“We are excited to have a season of some sort," Ward said. "We still face a lot of uncertainty, but these young men and women are used to that. We will make the most of the opportunity given to us.”After the conference championship, the season will end as all NCAA fall championships have been cancelled, except Division I FBS Football.The PBC did not make an announcement regarding the schedules of golf and tennis.Despite still having a shortened season, due to the NCAA cancelling fall championships, all athletes affected will be granted an extra year of eligibility. Contact Carlos Rodriguez at carlosjr521@gmail.com.