Big West Conference postpones fall 2020 sports competition

Sac State men’s soccer only campus team impacted by announcement

Sac+State+sophomore+forward+Benji+Kikanovic+runs+for+a+play+Saturday%2C+Oct.+19+against+CSU+Fullerton+at+Hornet+Field.+The+Sac+State+mens+soccer+team+will+have+its+fall+2020+season+postponed+due+to+the+Big+West+Conferences+announcement+Wednesday+that+they+will+postpone+sports+competition+through+the+end+of+the+calendar+year.+

Eucario Calderon

Sac State sophomore forward Benji Kikanovic runs for a play Saturday, Oct. 19 against CSU Fullerton at Hornet Field. The Sac State men’s soccer team will have its fall 2020 season postponed due to the Big West Conference’s announcement Wednesday that they will postpone sports competition through the end of the calendar year.

Jordan Parker

The Big West Conference board of directors announced Wednesday that fall sports competition will be postponed through the end of the calendar year.

Sacramento State has two teams affiliated with the Big West — women’s beach volleyball and men’s soccer — but with women’s beach volleyball occurring in spring, men’s soccer will be the only team impacted.

Per the announcement, the Sac State men’s soccer team will have their fall 2020 season, originally scheduled to begin Aug. 17, postponed. In 2019, the Hornets finished seventh out of eight teams in the conference, with a record of 7-9-2 under 31-year head coach Michael Lindenberger. 

The board of directors said in their announcement that a decision on whether the postponed fall sports will be able to resume in the spring will be announced at a later date. They will continue to monitor coronavirus-related developments as more scientific data becomes available and will consider additional actions if needed, the statement said. 

“Health and safety of Big West student-athletes, coaches, staff and the campus community continue to be the preeminent priorities for the CEO’s of the conference’s 11 institutions,” the statement read.

This decision only impacts teams that are members of the Big West Conference. 

The prospect of having any sports at all this fall continues to narrow as the California Collegiate Athletic Association and California Junior College Athletic Association also recently announced postponement of play. The majority of Sac State sports, including football, await an announcement from the Big Sky Conference board of directors about fall 2020 athletics.