NCCAA?Tourney Returns To Grace
March 12, 2021 at 2:17 a.m.
NCCAA?Tourney Returns To Grace
By Josh Neuhart-
In a typical year, March is arguably the most anticipated month for a sports fan’s calendar. But 2020 was far from a typical year.
One year ago, the world was dealing with the uncertain threat of a looming global pandemic.
Two weeks into March 2020, the sports world fell silent. The dominoes began to fall as individual games were canceled across the country. Then tournaments were canned, followed by the loss of entire seasons.
The 2020 NCCAA National Championships at Grace were officially canceled at 4:51 p.m. on March 12, six days before the start of competition. It was poised to be the ninth consecutive year hosting the men’s and women’s tournaments on Grace’s campus.
Most of the 2021 participating teams have that shared experience: a postseason being ripped away in 2020.
The feeling was no different in Winona Lake. Grace’s men’s basketball team was hours away from playing its opening game of the NAIA National Championships.
The women’s team was slated to be a top-two seed at NCCAA Nationals. The program’s all-time leading scorer (Vironnica Drake) sat on the precipice of 2,000 career points – what would be a first-time accomplishment for a Lady Lancer.
But 2020 had other plans. Players normally have a moment of closure on the hardwood at the end of their final game, drenched in sweat and tears after a championship win or coming up short in pursuit of a title. But COVID robbed many athletes of that experience.
So one year later, there is an added air of excitement to the 2021 championships – and a feeling of gratitude to be competing for a national title again.
The effects and resulting protocols from COVID will still exist, of course, inside Grace’s Manahan Orthopaedic Capital Center. Fans will be limited in capacity and masks will continue to be the norm, rightfully so.
But in between the sidelines, championship basketball will exist in beautiful normalcy again for four straight days. The thrill of victory, and the agony of defeat. Scissors will be sharpened, and nylon nets will be sacrificed to the cause of champions.
Championship basketball is back at last. And for that, we should all be thankful.
In a typical year, March is arguably the most anticipated month for a sports fan’s calendar. But 2020 was far from a typical year.
One year ago, the world was dealing with the uncertain threat of a looming global pandemic.
Two weeks into March 2020, the sports world fell silent. The dominoes began to fall as individual games were canceled across the country. Then tournaments were canned, followed by the loss of entire seasons.
The 2020 NCCAA National Championships at Grace were officially canceled at 4:51 p.m. on March 12, six days before the start of competition. It was poised to be the ninth consecutive year hosting the men’s and women’s tournaments on Grace’s campus.
Most of the 2021 participating teams have that shared experience: a postseason being ripped away in 2020.
The feeling was no different in Winona Lake. Grace’s men’s basketball team was hours away from playing its opening game of the NAIA National Championships.
The women’s team was slated to be a top-two seed at NCCAA Nationals. The program’s all-time leading scorer (Vironnica Drake) sat on the precipice of 2,000 career points – what would be a first-time accomplishment for a Lady Lancer.
But 2020 had other plans. Players normally have a moment of closure on the hardwood at the end of their final game, drenched in sweat and tears after a championship win or coming up short in pursuit of a title. But COVID robbed many athletes of that experience.
So one year later, there is an added air of excitement to the 2021 championships – and a feeling of gratitude to be competing for a national title again.
The effects and resulting protocols from COVID will still exist, of course, inside Grace’s Manahan Orthopaedic Capital Center. Fans will be limited in capacity and masks will continue to be the norm, rightfully so.
But in between the sidelines, championship basketball will exist in beautiful normalcy again for four straight days. The thrill of victory, and the agony of defeat. Scissors will be sharpened, and nylon nets will be sacrificed to the cause of champions.
Championship basketball is back at last. And for that, we should all be thankful.
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