{"id":7007,"date":"2021-03-27T17:57:49","date_gmt":"2021-03-27T17:57:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/wordpress\/lavie\/?p=7007"},"modified":"2021-03-27T17:57:49","modified_gmt":"2021-03-27T17:57:49","slug":"no-fans-in-the-stands","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/2021\/03\/27\/no-fans-in-the-stands\/","title":{"rendered":"No fans in the stands"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

By: Zack Kime \u201922, staff writer\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now that students are returning to LVC\u2019s campus and sports teams are ending their preseason plans, it\u2019s time for the long-awaited spring athletics season. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s one thing missing though\u2026the fans.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With LVC being a part of the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC), they\u2019re subject to any of the rules and regulations imposed on them and their surrounding institutions by the conference board.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As of Feb. 19, the MAC announced plans to return each spring sport to campus and pursue a modified season.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMAC has announced its plans to proceed with spring sports and swimming beginning in March,\u201d MAC officials said. \u201cThe return dates, schedules and championship formats have been determined.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shortly thereafter, realizing that the excitement from releasing schedules would cause fan interest, the MAC was again put in a position to make an announcement.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for those asking, the news would be much less pleasing than what they got concerning the eligibility of their season.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs the MAC prepares to begin spring competition, conference leadership believes that protecting the health and safety of the student-athletes and the greater campus communities must take priority,\u201d MAC officials said. \u201cNo individuals outside of those deemed necessary to conduct the event may attend, including students, faculty or staff.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Immediately before competition began, the MAC doubled down and rereleased the same statement on March 3, emphasizing that they will continue to evaluate the circumstances as the situation changes.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This decision came as a surprise to many eager LVC families, teams and supporters alike due to the loosening of capacity limits for indoor and outdoor sporting events recently passed by Governor Tom Wolf.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe need to balance protecting public health with leading the state to a robust economic recovery,\u201d Wolf said in a statement March 1.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ease of restrictions will allow for 15-20% capacity, regardless of the venue size. This is a major implication for professional sports organizations but leaves unanswered questions at the collegiate level.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As of now, LVC has adhered the wishes of the MAC and continues to put the campus\u2019 health and safety above all, leaving fans to turn to live streams and feeds to watch the games.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSome livestreams are better than others,\u201d an LVC parent who wished to remain anonymous, said. \u201cYou\u2019d be surprised how much a play-by-play announcer can make a difference, no matter the sport.\u201d  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other LVC parents, when asked, mentioned that they were especially looking forward to seeing their child\u2019s senior season in person.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regardless of the reason, it\u2019s evident that fans want to attend these spring sporting events and are showing intent to comply with social distancing and masking regulations.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether the MAC decides to change it\u2019s ruling or not, there\u2019s one thing that LVC athletics certainly isn\u2019t lacking\u2026the support of it\u2019s fans.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For more information regarding the MAC and their official rulings on any subject matter, visit https:\/\/gomacsports.com\/news\/2021\/3\/3\/general-mac-update-on-spectators.aspx  <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By: Zack Kime \u201922, staff writer\u00a0\u00a0 Now that students are returning to LVC\u2019s campus and sports teams are ending their preseason plans, it\u2019s time for the long-awaited spring athletics season.  There\u2019s one thing missing though\u2026the fans.   […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":7008,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-7007","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7007","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7007"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7007\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7007"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7007"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7007"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}