SAN LUIS OBISPO — The Big West Conference Board of Directors announced Wednesday that Big West fall sports competition will be postponed through the end of the calendar year. In making the decision, the Board recognized the continued serious challenges to health and safety on Big West campuses and communities impacted by the global COVID-19 pandemic.

The postponement of competition in conference-sponsored fall sports includes men’s and women’s cross country, men’s and women’s soccer and women’s volleyball.

The fall competitive schedules for men’s golf, women’s golf, men’s tennis and women’s tennis will also be postponed, as well as fall competition for sports in their non-traditional segment, such as baseball and softball.

The decision by the Big West does not impact fall sports unaffiliated with the Big West Conference. Cal Poly is a member of the Big Sky Conference in football, the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation for men’s and women’s swimming and diving and the Pac-12 Conference for wrestling.

“Although our student-athletes and our staff are disappointed, we all could see this coming weeks ago,” said Cal Poly director of athletics Don Oberhelman. “We know this to be the right decision, and I think our hearts were prepared for this to happen. Now we look forward to the next steps of preparing for the spring.”

Because the COVID-19 pandemic remains fluid, the Big West Board of Directors said a decision on whether fall sports competition would be feasible in the spring will be determined later, based on conditions and circumstances in the best interests of the student-athletes.

The return to campus of student-athletes who compete in the Big West will be done at the discretion of each institution. On-campus athletic-related activity will follow strict compliance with NCAA regulations, institutional policies and public health guidelines.

Wednesday’s decision does not impact the Big West winter sports of men’s and women’s basketball. Both are currently scheduled to begin their competition seasons Nov. 10.

Health and safety of Big West student-athletes, coaches, staff and campus communities continue to be the preeminent priorities for the CEOs of the conference’s 11 institutions. As medical and scientific data rapidly evolves around the pandemic, the conference will continue to monitor developments and consider additional actions as needed.