Big 8 Conference, DVC, will 'opt out' of early 2021 spring season

The Big 8 Conference and all institutions within the conference have decided to ‘opt out’ of the early 2021 Spring Season of athletic competition due to the health concerns related to COVID-19. Diablo Valley College is entrusted to create and maintain an educational environment that is guided by health and safety considerations which is the basis for this difficult decision.

The Vikings sports that normally compete in the fall and winter and were delayed will not compete at all during the 2020-2021 academic year. This includes Football, Women’s Soccer, Women’s Volleyball, Men’s & Women’s Water Polo, Men’s & Women’s Cross Country, as well as Men’s & Women’s Basketball.

This decision was made out of the safety and well-being of students being our highest priority. “Although we are saddened for our student-athletes and their inability to compete this year, we feel this was the best decision for their safety as well as the safety of our staff and the DVC community as a whole,” said Athletic Director, Christine Worsley. “We were very pleased with how our department navigated the fall semester and hope to progress with our athletic related activities this spring.”

Per the CDC, state, and county guidelines, our teams will continue to have non-contact conditioning, socially distanced and wearing masks. As we continue to work towards a sustainable COVID-19 testing protocol (as recommended by the CDPH in the Guidance for Institutions of Higher Education document), we will eventually progress to full practices.  These evolving plans will all be based on our state and county’s COVID-19 infection rates and risk tiers guidelines and the athletic department will adjust accordingly as conditions continue to change.

Diablo Valley College is hopeful we will compete in athletic competitions this spring during the “Late Spring” season. The deadline to decide whether the "Late Spring" sports will be played is February 26, 2021. Those sports include Men’s & Women’s Swimming, Men’s & Women’s Tennis, Men’s & Women’s Track & Field, Softball and Baseball.