Carnegie Mellon athletes show disappointment, understanding after fall seasons canceled

Mia Hartman was focused on a return to competition this fall.

A rising junior at Carnegie Mellon, the Kiski Area graduate put in a lot of mileage over the past couple of months toward a return to the Tartans women’s cross country team after missing her sophomore season because of overuse injuries to her shins.

But Hartman’s return, as well as the fall schedule for several hundred CMU athletes, was halted Wednesday when the athletic administration decided to cancel cross country, golf, soccer, tennis, football and women’s volleyball seasons because of the uncertainty surrounding the covid-19 pandemic and the goal of maintaining the health and safety of students, staff and community members.

“I was definitely disappointed when I heard the news,” said Hartman, an Apollo resident majoring in chemical and biomedical engineering.

“I was disappointed for the seniors who lost their last opportunity to compete and for the freshmen who missed their first season of college athletics.”

Hartman said while the news was jarring, she understood the decision was made with safety in mind.

“I want to do my part to ensure the safety of those at CMU and the surrounding Pittsburgh area,” she said.

Hartman also is a member of the CMU track and field team. She dealt with a foot stress fracture during the winter months.

As she worked to return from injury, she and her teammates saw the NCAA cancel the spring seasons as the impact of the pandemic was becoming more and more evident.

Hartman kept training and building mileage, and she completed rehab exercises as she worked to get back to her top level of strength and fitness.

“The extra time off allowed me to heal completely to be able to be healthy and compete this fall,” Hartman said.

CMU fall athletes received an email Wednesday from athletic director Joshua Centor detailing the decision and stressing to them the university’s athletic administration explored all avenues toward a safe return to play.

“While I was hoping (the cancellation of the fall season) would not be the case, seeing several other colleges canceling fall sports and the possibility of all classes being remote, I thought the cancellation was possible,” Hartman said.

In recent days, the Ivy League canceled fall sports seasons, and conferences such as the Big Ten, the Presidents’ Athletic Conference and the University Athletic Association reduced their fall seasons to competitions between conference members only.

CMU is affiliated with the PAC and the UAA.

“For each season, no matter at what level, you dream of competing,” Centor said. “I know it will be a weird feeling to not have sports on campus this fall. Definitely it is heartbreaking. My heart is with those students and coaches who worked so very hard and give it everything they have to be ready for their seasons and to represent Carnegie Mellon on the fields of play.

“Any decision of this magnitude is extraordinarily difficult and emotional. But at the end of the day, with the safety of everyone at the forefront, there were just too many factors at play to make us feel that we could have the parameters in place to return safely to sports. We will definitely be there to support all the students as best we possibly can.”

Centor said Carnegie Mellon has been in contact with the NCAA and expects all student-athletes to retain their year of eligibility.

Close to two dozen alumni from the WPIAL and City League were scheduled to return to CMU fall sports teams along with area freshmen hoping to make an impact.

“With the way things have progressed recently, I figured it would be unlikely that we would be able to compete,” said Jason Li, a Sewickley Academy graduate and rising senior on the CMU men’s golf team.

“Although it was very sad news to hear, I still have hope that this won’t cancel golf entirely in the fall. Even if we can’t compete, I hope we can still practice and play in some fashion.”

Liz Jankowski, a rising junior on the Tartans women’s volleyball team and an Oakland Catholic graduate, was looking forward to the season and the hope of a deeper run in the NCAA Division III tournament after a first-round loss in 2019.

“As important as volleyball is to me, I understand why the decision was made,” Jankowski said. “I also support CMU’s decision. Obviously, it is disappointing since our athletes are very competitive, but at the end of the day, safety must come first.”