In early March of 2020, Mercer County Community College’s spring sports were following a typical practice and game schedule when COVID-19 hit and within two weeks the campus and all sports were completely shut down.
MCCC men’s lacrosse coach Robert Siris said of the situation “Once Princeton University cancelled their spring sports, we knew that we would be shut down as well. It happened very quickly.”
By the fall of 2020, the college was still operating almost entirely remotely and all sports were still canceled for the year. The college had developed a symptom tracker for those required to be on campus, but it was only for academics. Sports were still completely on hold.
MCCC Athletic Director John Simone said “Everyone missed the day to day routine and the socialization.” He added that “For many [students] that were graduating, it was the end of their playing careers.”
Coach Siris spoke on this reality as well, stating “The most difficult part was not being able to see our players and coaches in person.”
But by the spring 2021 semester, sports activities began their practices again in preparation for the fall 2021 game season. It was a gradual, cautious step for Mercer’s athletics. Many precautions were in place including masking and distancing to only playing scrimmages.
As of late September this year, most students are back on campus and sports are returning to their regular schedules but still observing precautions.
However, the rise in the Delta Variant of COVID has already caused scares. A student on the softball team was exposed to covid and couldn’t attend face to face classes.
If a whole team gets exposed there is a risk not only to the players’ health but also to the season schedule if everyone has to quarantine.
Coach Siris says, “It is tough to predict the future, but I hope many students are vaccinated and we don’t have to revert to any closures.” He added “We will adapt as we have done in the past.”
