The Kent State women’s basketball team has suspended practice because of COVID-19 related issues, the Record-Courier reported Thursday.
The story, by Kent State beat reporter Allen Moff, said university spokesman Eric Mansfield confirmed the pause in an email but provided few other details.
The report didn’t say whether any players had tested positive for COVID. Other campus teams have had to limit or suspend practice because contact tracing had shown players had been exposed to others who did test positive.
University and Mid-American Conference protocols require regular COVID testing of players, increasing in number per week as the season approaches.
It has been widely reported that Kent State was to open its season at Northern Kentucky on Sunday, Nov. 29, but the team hasn’t yet released its non-conference schedule.
A COVID “pause” in practice generally lasts two weeks, which puts the opener — or any game before Dec. 3 — in doubt.
Kent State coaches, including women’s coach Todd Starkey, have been told to refer all COVID-related questions to Mansfield.
Flashes picked sixth in MAC
Mid-American Conference women’s coaches have picked Kent State to finish sixth in the 12-team league this season.
The conference announced the rankings and preseason all-MAC teams Thursday.
Defending champion Central Michigan, which has all five starters back, was an overwhelming choice to win the league again. Here are the coaches’ selections, with number of first-place voices in parenthesis and overall totals. A team got 12 points for a first-place vote, 11 for second, etc.
- Central Michigan (10) — 142 points.
- Ohio — 128 points.
- Ball State (1) — 119 points.
- Buffalo (1) — 106 points.
- Eastern Michigan — 94 points.
- Kent State — 88 points.
- Toledo — 71 votes.
- Northern Illinois — 42 points.
- Miami — 41 points.
- Akron — 39 points.
- Bowling Green — 38 points.
- Western Michigan — 28 points.
CMU got six votes to win the MAC Tournament, Ohio three, and Buffalo, Ball State and Eastern Michigan one each.
The league is playing a 20-game schedule without divisions this season. The MAC had been the last Division I conference to have divisions, though they didn’t affect seeding to the league tournament.
The eight teams with the best records will advance to the MAC Tournament in March at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland. There will be no first-round games on campus sites.
Kent State had the third-best record in the league last season. When COVID ended the season after the MAC quarterfinals, the Flashes were the highest-seeded team remaining.
At that point, it looked as if the Flashes would be among the favorites in 2020-21 with four of their top five scorers returning. But leading scorer Asiah Dingle transferred to Stoney Brook, and second-leading scorer Katie Shumate will miss some or all of this season because of a knee injury.
No Kent State player was on the first or second all-MAC preseason teams. The teams are:
FIRST TEAM
- Ball State senior forward Oshlyn Brown.
- Buffalo sophomore guard Dyaisha Fair.
- CMU senior guard Micaela Kelly.
- Ohio junior forward Erica Johnson.
- Ohio senior guard CeCe Hooks.
SECOND TEAM
- Akron senior forward Jordyn Dawson.
- Buffalo senior forward Summer Hemphill.
- CMU sophomore guard Molly Davis.
- CMU senior forward Kyra Bussell.
- EMU senior guard Areanna Combs.
MAC coaches meet the press Friday
The 12 MAC head coaches will hold a joint Zoom news conference with reporters Friday. WbbFlashes will have a story by mid-afternoon.
No fans at the M.A.C.C. this season
Kent State announced Thursday that only players, coaches and staff would be allowed at home events this weekend. Fans and players’ friends and families won’t be allowed because of COVID-19 concerns.
The KSU band, cheerleaders and dance team members won’t be there, either. There will be an exception for senior players’ families on Senior Night, assuming COVID conditions allow.