| Edited, Recorded and Written by Erin Drescher, Dante Furco, Kelly Lamarre, Sevrin Lavenstein |
ITHACA, N.Y. –– The Ithaca College athletics program was known for dedicated fans attending sporting events throughout the semester –– until the COVID-19 pandemic forced them all to stay at home.
A standard of pride and excellence is high with Ithaca College athletics. The Division III college brings in spectators from; students, alumni and locals, who appreciate its history of success within the athletics program.
The 2019 Cortaca Jug at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, was packed with 45,161 people, shattering the highest attendance record at a Division III football game ever. The recording-breaking attendance record proves to be a stark contrast from what was about to come a few months later.
Photo Credit: (Twitter: BomberSports)
Another highly successful program at Ithaca College is the baseball team. The team returned to Liberty League competition in the spring of 2021 after having their 2020 season canceled only seven games deep. The return to play was atypical because games were without fans and spectators for the first month of the season in March.
The atmosphere without fans was a foreign environment athletes did not compete under yet.
“It was just super quiet, and we had to bring our own energy every day,” said senior shortstop Jack Lynch.
The decision to come back to play without fan attendance came after several months of Ithaca College planning the return to campus and in-person learning. The institution followed all of the guidelines set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the New York State Department of Health.
“It made so much sense. There wasn’t anything we were nervous about. We feel like we have done such a good job mitigating the transmission of the virus with our campus community,” said Susan Bassett, the Ithaca College Associate Vice President and Director of Intercollegiate Athletics and Recreational Sports.
According to the CDC, “Events where people engage in behaviors such as interacting with others from outside their own household, singing, shouting, not maintaining physical distancing, or not wearing masks consistently and correctly, can increase risk.”
Ithaca College released its return to campus plan in January 2021 in preparation for the upcoming spring semester. The return plan included a community agreement members of the Ithaca College campus community were required to sign to live on campus, attend classes and any events associated on school grounds.
COVID-19 testing twice a week was enforced for all students and even on a more frequent basis for student-athletes. To participate on a varsity team, each member would have to complete a survey every day that would display a green badge at the end that would give clearance and access to facilities.
Peter Raider is not a student-athlete, but he is in charge of all social media of athletics as the head of the creative media team and works with the teams side-by-side. The cancelation of athletics in the fall of 2020 and the lack of fans in the spring of 2021 forced him to change his approach to social media content creation. He knew more fans were following along online due to prohibited attendance and shifted models accordingly.
“As we started to release things as we were coming back, all the engagement was super high because people hadn't seen cool things in a while,” Raider said. “[Fans] hadn't seen their teams participating; all of their family and friends were interested in seeing how all the teams were doing.”
The support of the creative media team reestablishes how highly valued athletics are at Ithaca College, as seen through the assistance from the faculty and staff who made the successful spring season possible.
The culture and aura of the athletics department were translated into an online social media presence through the creative media team because fans were not able to experience live in-person sporting events.
Raider and the creative media team had to revert to the original social media content creation strategies after an Apr. 1 announcement from the Liberty League loosened restrictions on fan attendance policies.
According to the Liberty League’s statement, “Each campus will determine if its currently enrolled students, faculty and staff may be permitted to attend its home athletic events, subject to local and state guidance and university/college policy with such capacity limited based on facility size.”
The statement allowed student fans at Ithaca College to start attending games and events on Apr. 2. While students were ecstatic to be attending games and events again, parents and fans outside of the college were still disappointed about attendance exclusions for sporting events on campus.
The decision to allow fans at games and events prompted Bassett and the Ithaca College Public Health Task Force to make the difficult choice of only including students in the loosened spectator capacity policy.
“I would have preferred there be a way to open up at least some of the games to the families for our student-athletes,” Bassett said. “I regret that wasn't possible, but for our entire campus, it was what was best for it in terms of mitigating risk.”
The Ithaca College administrators do not see this restriction on fans being in place for long. Administrators anticipate lower numbers of COVID-19 infection rates over the summer, which would allow a "normal" fall sports season in terms of scheduling and spectator attendance.
An increasing number in the vaccinated population brings hope to administrators and Ithaca College athletics fans. The discussion has shifted from allowing fans to attend games and events to whether individuals should decide for themselves to get the vaccine.
A required COVID-19 vaccine becomes an issue in athletics because the physicality of some sports is a risk for exposure to the virus.
On Apr. 7, Ithaca College announced a required COVID-19 vaccine for all students and faculty who plan to attend in-person classes for the fall 2021 semester. The school administration plans on a full return to in-person learning and campus life –– athletics included. Students, parents and local Ithaca residents can look forward to the typical sports culture at Ithaca College starting in the fall.