LOCK HAVEN, Pa. --- The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference's Board of Directors announced its return to competition guidelines and scheduling concepts for the Spring 2021.
 
The PSAC and its Board of Directors adopted the requirement that each of its member institutions should follow the NCAA Guidelines according to the NCAA Sport Science Institute in regard to returning to play amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic.
 
"We are very pleased that we are able to move forward with our plans for this semester," said PSAC Commissioner, Steve Murray. "Everyone at our member institutions has done an exceptional job getting us to this point and we are all excited to make it happen. We will remain vigilant to the circumstances of COVID-19 across our league and make changes as necessary, but for now we are very positive about returning to competition."
 
The safety and well-being of the student-athletes, coaches and athletic personnel remains the focus of the PSAC. As such, the league will require ongoing, COVID-19 surveillance testing using NCAA guidelines in each of the league's spring sports including baseball, softball, men's and women's tennis, men's and women's golf, women's lacrosse and outdoor track & field, along with the league's upcoming championships in men's and women's cross country and men's and women's swimming.
 
Spectators
The ability to have spectators in attendance at events hosted on campuses is determined by each institution in coordination with institutional, local, state and national guidelines. Spectators will be required to wear masks while in attendance. They are also required to maintain social distancing while in attendance. Spectator policies for each PSAC institution are listed below:
 
Each institution's spectator policy is subject to change. For more information regarding spectators and masking, see the information below or visit the links for further detail on a specific institution.
 

Institution	Are Spectators Permitted to be in Attendance at Athletic Events on Campus?
Bloomsburg	Spectators will not be allowed at events.
Cal U	Yes for baseball and limited to 320 total.
Clarion	Participant pass list only.
East Stroudsburg	Yes, four per student-athlete.
Edinboro	Four per student-athlete for outdoor events only. No spectators permitted at indoor events.
Gannon	Currently, no spectators are allowed in attendance at sporting events hosted on the Gannon campus due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Access to the facility is limited to participating teams and those workers whose duties are essential to the contest. Gannon will continue to reassess and monitor this policy as the pandemic and environment changes.
IUP	Spectators will be allowed at events.
Kutztown	Spectators will not be allowed at events.
Lock Haven	Spectators will not be allowed at events.
Mansfield	Yes on a very limited basis.
Mercyhurst	Spectators will not be allowed at events.
Millersville	Spectators are limited to only Millersville student-athlete family.
UPJ	Spectators will be limited to 400 for baseball and 200 for softball.
Seton Hill	Yes, spectators will be permitted. They must wear masks at all times and maintain social distancing.
Shepherd	Spectators at events is still to be determined.
Shippensburg	To be determined
Slippery Rock	Spectators will be limited to a specific number of students per student-athlete for outdoor events only. No spectators permitted indoor.
West Chester	Spectators will not be allowed at events.

 
Schedules/Championship Updates
In terms of PSAC scheduled competition, spring sports regular seasons are set to begin currently, with PSAC competition for each sport as followed:
 

Sport	Regular Season	Championship Format
Baseball	Conference regular season games begin Friday, March 12 and will end Saturday, May 8.	8 teams qualify, 4 from each division beginning Wednesday, May 12:   Wednesday, May 12: Quarterfinal - Single Elimination.  On campus site, #4 at #1 and #3 at #2; all games within the division.   Sun-Mon, May 16-17: Semifinals - Best of 3 Series; On campus site, highest Quarterfinal winner in each division; within the division   Fri-Sat, May 21-22: Championship - Best of 3 Series; Semifinal winners; Site TBD
Softball	Conference regular season games begin Friday, March 5 and will end Saturday, May 1.	8 teams qualify, 4 from each division beginning Wed-Thurs, May 5-6 Wed-Thurs, May 5-6: Quarterfinals - Best of 3 Series.  On campus site, #4 at #1 and #3 at #2; all games within the division   Sun-Mon, May 9-10: Semifinals – Best of 3 Series. On campus site, highest Quarterfinal winner in each division; within the division   Fri-Sat, May 15-16: Championship - Best of 3 Series; Semifinal winners; Site TBD
Lacrosse	Conference regular season games begin Saturday, March 13 and will end Wednesday, April 28.	6 teams qualify, 3 from each division beginning Saturday, May 1   Saturday, May 1 - Quarterfinals: #3 at #2 within division   Wednesday, May 5 - Semifinals: Round 1 winner at #1 seed within division   Wednesday, May 8 - Championship: Semifinal winners; Site TBD
Men's and Women's Tennis	Conference regular season matches begin Saturday March 20 for the men and Saturday, March 27 for the women. They end on Saturday, April 24. The women's quarterfinals are April 27, the men's and women's semifinals are April 30.	Men's 4 teams qualify, beginning Tuesday, April 27   Tuesday, April 27 - Semifinals:  #4 at #1; #3 at #2 (no divisional play in Men's Tennis)   Friday, April 30 - Championship: Semifinal winners; Site TBD   Women's 6 teams qualify, 3 from each division beginning Saturday, April 24.   Saturday, April 24 - Quarterfinals:  #3 at #2 within division   Wednesday, April 28 - Semifinals: Round 1 winner at #1 seed within division   Saturday, May 1 - Championship: Semifinal winners; Site TBD
Men's and Women's Golf	The men's golf regular season is set to begin March 15 and the women will begin March 22	The golf championships will be April 9-10 at Hershey Country Club.
Men's and Women's Cross Country	Men's and women's cross country did not have a PSAC scheduled regular season	The cross country championships will be March 20 at Lock Haven University Foundation Fields.
Men's and Women's Swimming	Men's and women's swimming did not have a PSAC scheduled regular season	The swimming championships will be from April 21-24 at the Graham Aquatic Center in York, Pennsylvania.
Men's and Women's Outdoor Track & Field	The men's and women's outdoor track & field regular season will begin March 27	The track & field championships will be held Thurs-Sat, May 6-8 at Shippensburg University

 
*All regular season schedules are subject to change.
 
Spectators will not be allowed at men's and women's cross country championships, or men's and women's swimming championships. They will be permitted at men's and women's golf championships. Spectators being permitted at outdoor track and field championships is still to be decided. All PSAC championship spectator policies are subject to change.
 
For more information on the NCAA's guidelines for COVID-19, visit the links below:
Coronavirus Information Central
COVID-19 Hotline
COVID-19 Mental Health Resources
NCAA Division II COVID-19 Compliance Updates
 
National and State Government resources and information are linked below:
Center for Disease Control (CDC) COVID-19 Information
State of Pennsylvania COVID-19 Information
State of West Virginia COVID-19 Information
 
 
ABOUT THE PSAC
Headquartered in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference is an NCAA Division II Conference comprised of 18 institutions in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. The member institutions are Bloomsburg University, California University of Pennsylvania, Clarion University, East Stroudsburg University, Edinboro University, Gannon University, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Kutztown University, Lock Haven University, Mansfield University, Mercyhurst University, Millersville University, The University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown, Seton Hill University, Shepherd University, Shippensburg University, Slippery Rock University and West Chester University.