Updated at 4:44 p.m.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Mountain West Conference has reportedly suspended all spring sports competitions indefinitely.

The Mountain West Conference released the following statement on Thursday, March 12.  

“Given the current status of COVID-19, the Mountain West Board of Directors has suspended all spring sport competitions indefinitely.  The health and well-being of student-athletes, as well as the campus and general communities, is of utmost priority,” the statement read. “Therefore, the Board has determined the most prudent course of action is to align with the recommendations of public health care and government officials to help limit the spread of the virus.”

The Mountain West’s suspension of spring sports puts Nevada’s baseball, softball, men’s golf, women’s golf, track and field, men’s tennis, women’s tennis, and women’s swim teams on hold for the 2020 season. 

Remaining schedules

Nevada baseball had 36 remaining games for the 2020 season, including 10 non-conference matchups before conference play began against Fresno State on April 3. Nevada softball had 26 regular-season games and was scheduled to begin conference play against UNLV on Friday, March 13. 

Men’s tennis had eight matches left for the regular season and was scheduled to face UC Davis on March 13. Women’s tennis had 10 games remaining and was scheduled to face San Jose State on Friday, March 20.  

The Nevada women’s golf team was scheduled to face Fresno State in the Fresno State Classic March 30-31. Men’s golf was scheduled to face Oregon during the Duck Invitational in Eugene, Ore. March 23-24. 

The women’s track and field team were scheduled to compete in the Aggie Outdoor Open March 13-14 in Davis, Calif. Junior swimmer Donna dePolo of the Nevada women’s swim and dive team qualified for the 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials held June 21-28 in Omaha, Neb.

Nevada Athletics responds to the developing situation

In an email sent to members of the media, Nevada Athletics outlined their next steps after the Mountain West’s decision earlier today.

The update detailed how some upcoming events —some hosted by the department and some not—would be effected. The 11th annual Blue Tie Ball—a postseason awards dinner for men’s and women’s basketball—has been canceled. The event was scheduled to take place on April 10.

Nevada’s Nicola Ader and her coaches are currently on their way back to Reno. Ader was scheduled to compete in the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships this weekend.

Nevada athletics director Doug Knuth released a statement as part of the update from the department.

“The safety, health and well-being of our student-athletes, along with that of our coaches, staff and the Wolf Pack community are of the utmost importance to us,” Knuth said. “We are in support of this decision by the conference’s board of directors and we know that the Mountain West is not alone in these decisions.”

Additionally, Knuth, accompanied by Rhonda Lundin Bennett, Nevada’s senior woman administrator, and Ryan Mitchell, the Wolf Pack’s senior associate athletics director for intercollegiate services will meet with student-athletes and coaches to assess how best to help them during this time.

“This is a difficult time for a great many of us, and these public-safety decisions to limit the spread of COVID-19 can create more questions than answers,” Knuth said. “We will fully support our student-athletes, not only in terms of physical and mental health, but also academically and in any issues related to NCAA eligibility.”

This is a breaking news story and will be updated when more information is made available.

Isaiah Burrows can be reached at rfreeberg@sagebrush.unr.edu or on Twitter @SagebrushSports.