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Hannah Greene<\/strong> |\u00a0 Sports Editor<\/span><\/p>\n Western Oregon\u2019s Track and Field team is known for their success, having top finishers every season and sending multiple athletes to Nationals every year. This indoor season saw some top marks and finishes with promising futures for the spring season \u2014 particularly the Men\u2019s Distance Medley Relay. The first leg saw Derek Holdsworth running the 1200; second leg, Gabe Arce-Torres running the 400; third leg, Max Carmona running the 800; and the final leg, Justin Crosswhite running the 1600.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The Wolves\u2019 DMR crossed into the top 25 rankings of 2020 NCAA DII Men\u2019s Indoor Track and Field, giving them the opportunity of a lifetime \u2014 to compete in Alabama against the top-ranked schools in the country. As the Wolves traveled to Birmingham, Alabama on March 11, COVID-19 was starting to creep into everyone\u2019s lives. The Wolves arrived, were welcomed with southern hospitality and continued their training for the big race. Though COVID-19 began to pick up, the NCAA DII Indoor Championships was still \u201con\u201d \u2014 making changes to the meet, not allowing spectators, but still giving the athletes a chance to compete. However, on Thursday, March 12, the Wolves\u2019 season came to an abrupt end with the NCAA stating there would be no meet due to the increasing effects of COVID-19 \u2014 disbelief filled the Wolves, to say the least.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe virus tore my final indoor meet apart,\u201d said Holdsworth on the decision from the NCAA, \u201cthat (meet) could have led to more looks \u2014 instead it shows I\u2019m just another 800 guy who\u2019s run a respectable, but not world class, time, it\u2019s extremely frustrating.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Not only did the decision affect those who would have competed in the Indoor Championship, but it ended the upcoming spring season for all athletes, ripping away many \u201csenior seasons.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWhen I found out that the Indoor Championships got cancelled, I was really bummed for the guys and all the other GNAC athletes,\u201d stated Grayson Burke, a senior on the Track and Field team. \u201cBut it never crossed my mind that the entire rest of the season would get cancelled.\u201d The Wolves\u2019 Track and Field team qualifies runners to the Nationals almost every year. Having the season taken away also ripped away the chances for multiple seniors. Due to COVID-19, all spring sports were cancelled, at every level, in every state. The NCAA granted eligibility to seniors, but that doesn\u2019t mean chances weren\u2019t lost.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI feel the NCAA did the right thing by granting full eligibility to all national qualifiers,\u201d said Carmona, \u201cbut sadly I feel like this is just a minor Band-Aid over a massive wound \u2014 this may have been the last opportunity to compete on a national level, but I will no longer be at Western and therefore cannot compete.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Yes, athletes were offered the chance to compete again, but this does not solve the issue for those who were on scholarships, partial scholarships, grants or even federal aid \u2014 those wanting to use the eligibility will still have to go to school and pay for that schooling, which not everyone is able to do. Some student athletes feel that the NCAA has a lot to improve on. \u201cWe were put in harm\u2019s way simply for the meet to be cancelled the day before,\u201d said Carmona about having to travel through major international airports to get to the National Championships.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n COVID-19 continues to affect athletes nationally and globally, leaving sports up in the air to the unknown.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n