A nation of professional and collegiate sports came to a sudden stop last week. Play was suspended in the NBA, the NCAA, and also at Central Methodist University.

CMU said in a statement on Friday afternoon that all athletic events and competitions would be suspended for the spring season, “based on the continuing developments across the landscape of athletics from the effects of COVID-19.”

Four hours earlier, the Heart of America conference announced a decision by the Council or Presidents to suspend all conference competitions through March 30.

“We have chosen to exercise an abundance of caution as we move through the uncharted waters of the COVID-19 situation," Commissioner Lori Thomas said.

“We will use this time to monitor the ever-changing health crisis and determine the best steps for the health and welfare of our student-athletes, coaches, administration, and fans moving forward.”

At Central Methodist, the leadership decided transitioning to online instruction for the rest of the semester was the best approach.

“We are disappointed for our student-athletes, Central Methodist community, and fans; however, the overall health and safety of all involved is our top priority,” said Natasha Wilson, CMU’s Vice President for Athletics.

“This unparalleled situation creates challenges and anxiety for the entire campus community. The athletic department appreciates your patience as we navigate this rapidly developing situation. Our overall mission behind the precautions we are taking is to protect our students, faculty, staff, and neighbors. There is no template for a response to this unprecedented situation we are facing globally.

"We are a family and we will pull together to navigate these challenging times."

The Central Methodist baseball team, which jumped from No. 20 to 10 in the latest poll, played 21 of the 50 games on its regular season schedule. The Eagle softball team played just 14 out of 57. The track & field athletes were scheduled to begin the outdoor season with a home meet on March 21.

On Monday, the NAIA announced that athletes would not lose a year of eligibility with the shortened season. 

"In an effort to provide relief, no spring sport student-athlete will be charged a season of competition," NAIA President Jim Carr said.

"Any spring sport student-athlete who was enrolled full-time in 2020 will be awarded two additional semester terms of attendance or the equivalent."

Timeline

At first, many of the major sports leagues planned to combat the spread of coronavirus by closing competitions to fans.

On Tuesday, March 10, Ohio governor Mike DeWine recommended that all indoor sporting events in the state be played without fan attendance based on information from the Governor’s Health Advisory Group.

On Wednesday, the Ivy League canceled its spring practices and competitions. At 3:30 p.m. the NCAA announced that the Division I basketball tournament would be played without fans. By 7 p.m. the Big Ten and ACC conferences had also made the decision to close their basketball tournaments to fans.

As far as canceling competitions altogether, the first major domino fell when Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert tested positive for the coronavirus and the NBA suspended play on Wednesday evening around 8:30. Around 10 pm, the NAIA released a statement that fan attendance at the winter championships would be limited.

By 12:15 p.m. the next day, the NAIA had canceled the winter championships, the NHL had suspended play, and all NCAA conferences had canceled basketball tournaments.