Eastern to limit capacity to 25 percent for basketball games

WILBURTON, OK (Dec. 16, 2020) – Eastern Oklahoma State College will limit capacity at the C.C. Dunlap Field House to about 25 percent for the upcoming Mountaineer basketball season to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19.

Athletic Director Matt Parker said attendance will be limited to about 170 people, with masks mandatory and other safety protocols in place, based on guidelines established by the NJCAA Region II conference.

"We're disappointed that we will have to limit the number of fans who can watch the men's and women's basketball teams in person this season," Parker said. "However, we feel this plan will help us keep our student-athletes, staff and fans safe during the pandemic, which is our top priority."   

Parker said season ticket holders will make up about 37 percent of the available seating capacity. Members of the men's and women's basketball teams will receive two tickets each for family and friends. Visiting teams are also allotted 40 tickets for their fans, per Region II guidelines.

"Unfortunately, this leaves almost no available seating for general admission tickets. Fans will not be able to enter the gym without having their name on the pass list," Parker said. "This was an incredibly difficult decision to make, and we will miss having all of our fans at the game. But these actions provide the best opportunity for our student-athletes to stay healthy and remain competitive for the entire basketball season."

All fans will be required to wear a mask or face covering at all times, except when eating or drinking. There will be designated seating areas in the stands for team members and the visiting fans.

Eastern's Mountaineer Radio and Mountaineer TV plans to livestream several home games this season. Fans will be able to watch the games for free online at radio.eosc.edu or using the CITYLINKtv app on Roku, Amazon Fire TV and Android TV. A schedule of planned broadcasts will be available soon at eoscathletics.com.

The first game of the season for the Eastern women's team is set for Jan. 22-23 at the Hill College Classic. The men's team will begin action on Jan. 25 versus Odessa at the University of Central Oklahoma.