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The EIVA season will still continue, even without the participating of the last two conference champions.
The men’s volleyball conference announced Thursday that it intends to proceed with this season following No. 12 Princeton and Harvard putting halts to playing any more matches.
All Ivy League schools, including Harvard and Princeton, opted Wednesday to cease all spring sports because of the coronavirus outbreak.
“We understand and respect the decision of the Ivy League, at the same time we are disappointed for the student-athletes, coaches and staff at Harvard and Princeton,” EIVA Commissioner Russ Yurk said in a statement. “They work hard in the classroom and on the court, and to not be able to finish the season is unfortunate.”
Without these two schools, there remain six schools eligible to compete for the 2020 EIVA championship.
The EIVA stated it will continue to follow all guidelines from the NCAA, member schools and local health officials to determine appropriate playing conditions for all matches.
Penn State, NJIT and Sacred Heart announced earlier this week that they would bar any fans from attending home matches.
The conference also stated it will consider evaluating current policies for teams qualifying to the EIVA Tournament. The EIVA Tournament, which takes place mid-April, has been a four-team event based on the top performers in the EIVA standings.
The defending EIVA champions Princeton were in second place in the conference standings, while the 2018 conference champions Harvard were in fifth place.