Spring sports at Smith College will be canceled in response to the spread of the coronavirus, the college announced Wednesday.
The school announced Tuesday that it will move to remote learning by the end of the month when in-person classes will cease. All students will be required to move off campus unless circumstances prevent that.
Smith’s basketball team qualified for its first NCAA Division III Sweet 16 with two wins last weekend, and will play Messiah College at 5 p.m. Friday at Tufts. No spectators will be permitted for that game or Saturday’s sectional final should the Pioneers advance. Tufts faces Williams at 7 p.m. Friday. All three games will be streamed online at tuftsjumbocast.com.
All Smith spring athletics training trips, clinics and games are canceled. Unlike Amherst College, which left open the possibility of spring games resuming, Smith’s decision is final.
The Pioneers are one of many programs making similar decisions in the face of the COVID-19 outbreak.
Amherst College announced the stoppage of its spring season Tuesday, and the NESCAC announced all conference games and championships would be canceled Wednesday after a unanimous vote. Should individual members return and resume play by the end of the season, they could still play games and qualify for the postseason through at-large bids, Amherst College interim Director of Athletic Communications Melissa Martin said.
Mount Holyoke has not yet made a decision on its spring season.