Patriot League announces scheduling formats
All 3 seasons, encompassing 18 different sports, will be contested from February through May
It will be a busy spring season for the Patriot League, which announced Friday morning it will conduct competitions for 18 different sports from February through May.
Most notable is a plan for all fall sports such as football, soccer, volleyball and field hockey to play in the spring. They will be held simultaneous with the traditional spring sports such as lacrosse, baseball, softball, tennis and golf.
Swimming and diving along with indoor track and field, winter sports that span both semesters, will also be held during the spring.
Navy is a member of the Patriot League in 21 varsity sports — 10 on the men’s side and 11 on the women’s side. Loyola-Maryland joined the Patriot League for the 2013- 14 academic year and competes in 16 sports ( seven men, nine women).
Loyola Maryland athletic director Donna Woodruff acknowledged playing so many sports during the spring season presents challenges. She said increased precautions required to safely maneuver through the pandemic matched with the addition of playing fall sports in the spring “definitely creates a logistical puzzle for all of us.”
“However, as we have done for the past 10 months, I am confident thatwe will continue to plan, adapt and move forward to provide our student- athletes with the best
experiences possible,” she said.
Naval Academy AD Chet Gladchuk creditedPatriot League Commissioner JenniferHeppel with crafting an intricate plan to play fall and winter sports during the spring. He said the Navy athletic department will do whatever is necessary to manage all the overlapping sports in an effective manner.
“To have most of our programs back in action is important to theNavalAcademy as an institution,” he said. “Not only does it give us competitive opportunities, it helps us meet the mission of developing midshipmen mentally, morally and physically.”
Conference schedules for traditional spring sports will be altered due to safety considerations related to the coronavirus pandemic. Patriot League members in lacrosse and baseball will be divided into North and South divisions.
Navy and LoyolaMaryland are both part of the South Division that includes Bucknell, Lafayette and Lehigh. Teams will play each divisional opponent at least once with limited games against non- divisional opponents. A minimum of seven league games will be played by each school.
The Patriot League suspended and later canceled all spring sports in mid- March when the coronavirus crisis erupted. The conference announced in August that varsity sports would not be held during the fall but the spring instead.
“This pandemic has taken on a life none of us would have ever imagined, and its impact on collegiate sports has been significant,” Navy men’s lacrosse coach Joe Amplo said. “Being to the point of playing potentially10 games is exciting. We’re going to celebrate the opportunity tocompeteand give these players an opportunity to represent their institutions.”
In addition to at least seven Patriot League games, Amplo is also hoping to schedule three nonconference contests.
Jacksonville has confirmed it will travel to Annapolis to playNavy onFeb. 27. Ideally, the Midshipmen would open the season Feb. 20 against an opponent still be determined, and Amplo hopes to get one more.
Patriot League play for lacrosse will begin March 6, although that schedule has not been announced by the conference. Amplo said Navy will definitely play archrival Army as one of its crossover opponents.
“We’re trying to be safe but be aggressive enough to give our players a chance to play every week,” said Amplo, who is not scheduling anymidweek contests.
Navy men’s lacrosse will not play two traditional opponents — Maryland and Johns Hopkins — due to scheduling conflicts. The Big Ten Conference is expected to announce a double round- robin scheduling format among members only.
Men’s andwomen’s soccer will also have divisions, with Navy and Loyola Maryland both in the South Division along with American, Bucknell and Lehigh. There will be seven conference games beginning Feb. 27.
Soccer will not have crossover games as part of the official Patriot League schedule. However, Navy women’s soccer will host archrival Army on March 20 and plans to play Colgate at a neutral site during a bye week for both schools.
Coach Carin Gabarra said the Army and Colgate games will not count toward the Patriot League standings. Within the South
Division, Navy is playing Bucknell, Loyola and American twice and Lehigh once.
“I’m excited becauseCOVID has been so unpredictable that I don’t think anyone felt completely confident in anything,” Gabarra said. “It’s not going to be perfect, but we’re thankful for the opportunity to play.”
Gabarra was grateful that Gladchuk and the Naval Academy medical staff allowed women’s soccer to play three games during the fall season and is hopeful that experience will benefit a relatively young, inexperienced squad.
Coach Tim O’Donohue said Navy men’s soccer will play the same schedule as the women. When the Navy women are home, the men will be on the road against thes ame school.
Navy men’s soccer played two games during the fall, upsetting third- ranked Virginia 3- 2 in an exhibition and then knocking off N. C. State 2- 1. Donohue said those performances against two solid Atlantic Coast Conference programs has given the Midshipmen confidence.
“We think we have a very good team and our goal is to capture a Patriot League championship,” he said. “Players want to play and coaches want to coach. We appreciate the opportunity to get out there and compete.”
Indoor track and field is categorized as a medium- risk sport and therefore the Patriot League will not conduct a full championship meet this year. Instead, it will hold Patriot League Challenge meets at four different sites on either Feb. 27 or 28.
American, Navy and Loyola will compete in a tri- meet Feb. 27 at Wesley Brown Field House on the academy campus. Coach Jamie Cook said the Army- Navy dual meet is scheduled for Feb. 13 at West Point.
Cook admitted itwas disappointing there will not be any Patriot League
Championships for indoor track and field.
“We’re not really excited about it, to be completely honest,” Cook said. “Our season is based on beating Army and winning the Patriot League.
“We’ll do the best we can during the limited indoor season, then regroup and put all our efforts into the outdoor season.”
Outdoor track and field is categorized as a low- risk sport, and the Patriot League is planning to hold a championship meet involving all member schools April 30 and May 1 at Army West Point. Navy will begin its outdoor track and field season in early March.
To date, Cook said the Midshipmen have been holding intra- squad competitions to stay sharp.
Swimming and diving season would normally begin in early September and conclude in mid- March with the NCAA Championships. Bucknell will host the Patriot League championships April 21- 24.
Navy women’s coach John Morrison said the NCAA championship meet is still scheduled for mid- March. Swimmers qualify on times, while divers qualify based off scores.
“Our goal is to qualify as many athletes as possible within this next month- and- ahalf,” Morrison said.
Navy women’s swimming and diving is tentatively slated to open its season Feb. 6 with a dual meet against Towson. The Army- Navy meet is scheduled for Feb. 26 and 27 at West Point.
Morrison is still considering additional competition dates in early March and April to ensure the swimmers and divers are fine- tuned for the NCAA and Patriot League championship meets.
“We’re just thrilled to be able to get back together and train,” he said. “Any competition opportunities will be awesome.”