HANOVER — Entering January, Jason Liu was starting to accept the tough reality that his time hitting the green for the Big Green was coming to a close.
A senior, he didn’t have a team on which to compete because Dartmouth’s program had been cut in July. Plus, the Ivy League didn’t allow grad students to play. He began to formalize plans to enroll in graduate school at the Thayer School of Engineering this spring.
Those plans have since changed.
On Jan. 29, the athletic department announced it would be reinstating the five varsity sports it had previously cut in July, including men’s golf. And on Thursday, the Ivy League presidents granted a temporary waiver for senior student-athletes who lost a season of competition due to COVID-19.
The Ancient Eight will allow the extra year of eligibility to students for the 2021-22 academic year if they are admitted as graduate students at their undergraduate university. Once accepted, they must receive approval from the conference office.
It’s an unprecedented move for a conference that has held steady to ban graduate students from competition.
“I would not have believed you if you told me that, by mid-February, I would able to start practicing and getting ready for another season of golf,” Liu said in a phone call. “I know it is cliche, but it’s really hard to put into words how ecstatic I am about it. Honestly, it is the best possible outcome for me and the team.”
Justin Sodokoff is in a similar situation. A senior diver, he earned his first All-American mention last spring and was preparing to transfer out of Dartmouth at the end of the academic year.
Now, he will stay. The Ivy League’s announcement on Thursday helps him, but he was already planning to move around some credits so he could qualify for next season as an undergraduate, if necessary.
“That they are willing to bring athletes back another year definitely helps my case,” Sodokoff said. “I have been staying in shape every day. I do everything I can, so when I get the phone call I can be back in the pool at my best.
“As of a week ago, I was starting to plan to go elsewhere. But life works in mysterious ways, so here I am. Trying to come back next year. It’s been quite a roller coaster.”
For as nicely as it has worked out for Liu and Sodokoff, the wait to make the announcement until February impacts many fall and winter athletes.
Players throughout the Ivy League made the decision to transfer before the start of the academic year. Others, such as Dartmouth men’s basketball player Chris Knight, held off until the league made the decision to call off winter sports. But now that letters of intent have been signed, even if someone like Knight wanted to come back, it might be impossible.
A decision on spring sports is expected by the end of the month.
The Ivy League allows admission slots only for the undergraduate level. How many student-athletes can actually be admitted into the graduate school without assistance is unknown. Coaches will need to balance playing for chock-full rosters, too.
“I haven’t been in the pool since NCAA zone championships,” said Sodokoff, who is a sociology major. “Although it’s been a long time, I know I’ll be ready when I can step on the board. I’ve been diving since I was 6; for the amount of time I’ve been diving, it’s all muscle memory.”
Liu had a stellar junior year in 2019-20, leading the men’s golf team with a 73.73 stroke average over 11 rounds.
He admitted he’s not in the shape he would like to be right now, attributed to the fact he thought his career was over a month ago. And even though Dartmouth does not have a home course because of the closure of Hanover Country Club, the expectation is to get in a handful of rounds this spring at Montcalm Golf Club in Enfield and Lake Sunapee Country Club in New London.
“The plan is for when the courses open in early May, we’ll start practicing,” he said. “I was going to be in the area regardless, but with this decision to provide an extra year of eligibility, it just gives me more motivation to work hard and compete.”
Pete Nakos can be reached at pnakos@vnews.com.