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The minimum amount of matches that NCAA Division II men’s volleyball teams will have to play next season has decreased because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The NCAA Division II Presidents Council voted on Tuesday to reduce the minimum number of matches from nine to six for the 2021 season.
Along with men’s volleyball, the council voted to reduce the minimum contest requirements by 33 percent for all but one NCAA Division II sport following feedback from Division II leaderships. Numerous institutions, according to the NCAA, will be unable to maintain the level of team travel needed to meet the current requirement because of projected financial hardships from the coronavirus pandemic.
“The financial challenges faced by institutions because of COVID-19 are considerable and, as we prepare for summer and fall, continue to increase,” Sandra Jordan, chair of the Division II Presidents Council, said in a statement. “The approved reductions strike an important balance of providing schools with scheduling flexibility, maintaining competitive equity within the one-year reductions to minimums and maximums, and continuing to prioritize opportunities for student-athletes to compete in NCAA championships. Periods of national crisis require carefully considered compromise.”
NCAA Division I and NCAA Division II teams compete for the same national championship in men’s volleyball. In addition, the MIVA, EIVA and MPSF are comprised of both Division I and Division II programs.
Division II men’s volleyball teams have well exceeded the minimum number of matches in recent years.
Alderson Broaddus in 2019 came the closest in recent years to not exceeding the minimum amount of matches but still played 13 matches that season