RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. – On Monday, the Great American Conference announced second-semester start dates for basketball, volleyball and women's soccer.
The league's basketball season will feature a 20-game divisional schedule with an opening night slated for Thursday, Jan. 7 with six doubleheaders – Arkansas Tech at Arkansas-Monticello, Southwestern Oklahoma State at East Central, Ouachita at Harding, Southern Arkansas at Henderson State, Northwestern Oklahoma State at Southern Nazarene and Southeastern Oklahoma State at Oklahoma Baptist.
Harding's basketball teams will play four games each against Eastern Division schools Arkansas-Monticello, Arkansas Tech, Henderson State, Ouachita Baptist and Southern Arkansas.
Volleyball features a 10-week, 10-match divisional schedule that opens Tuesday, Jan. 26, and runs through Tuesday, March 30. In the opening slate, UAM visits Harding, Ouachita hosts Arkansas Tech, East Central faces Northwestern Oklahoma State Southern Arkansas travels to Henderson State, defending champion Oklahoma Baptist welcomes in Southeastern Oklahoma State and SWOSU ventures to Southern Nazarene.
In volleyball, Harding will be in the Eastern Division and play two matches each against Arkansas-Monticello, Arkansas Tech, Henderson State, Ouachita Baptist and Southern Arkansas.
Women's soccer gets underway Saturday, Feb. 20, with three league contests – Southern Nazarene at Ouachita, Oklahoma Baptist at Harding and East Central at Northwestern Oklahoma State. Defending champion Southwestern Oklahoma State hits the field for the first time one week later.
In women's soccer, Harding will play once against each of the other six teams in the conference: Oklahoma Baptist, Ouachita Baptist, Northwestern Oklahoma, Southwestern Oklahoma, East Central and Southern Nazarene.
"I can't say enough about the work done by our presidents and administrators to place the GAC in a position to safely resume competition," GAC Commissioner Will Prewitt said. "There's a lot of work to be done, and we are keeping our fingers crossed regarding public health conditions across Arkansas and Oklahoma, but we are hopeful to see the lights go back on for games Jan. 7."
The conference office also released a fall 2021 football schedule that kicks off a full 11-game round-robin Thursday, Sept. 2. Harding is scheduled to begin the season Saturday, Sept. 4, at home against East Central.
Southwestern Oklahoma State hosts the GAC Cross Country Championships Saturday, Feb. 27.
"We are really excited to release these schedules and look forward to returning to action soon," Harding athletic director Jeff Morgan said. "We hope to have more information about game-day administration and fans in early December."
Formats and dates for the men's soccer regular season as well as the championships for basketball, volleyball, and soccer will be determined later.
Members will play spring sports schedules as previously approved by the conference's Council of Athletic Administrators and Council of Presidents.
The GAC will continue to evaluate NCAA, federal, state, and local developments and provide updated revisions as further information becomes available.
