Holy Cross closes athletic events to general public amid COVID surge

The College of the Holy Cross in Worcester has temporarily suspended spectator attendance at all athletic events in response to the surge in COVID-19 cases, according to a Friday announcement from the athletic department. 

Sporting events will be closed to the general public until further notice, starting with Friday’s men’s basketball game against Lafayette College of Pennsylvania, per the announcement. 

Holy Cross has an estimated 74 active COVID-19 cases as of Friday, according to its COVID-19 dashboard. Students and staff are required to be vaccinated, with 96% of both students and staff fully vaccinated, and the booster is encouraged, but not mandatory, according to the school’s website.

Any tickets purchased for sporting events at the college will be refunded.

Since mid-December, as the Omicron variant has caused a significant surge in coronavirus cases, several Massachusetts schools have banned spectators. Harvard University in Cambridge has closed athletic events to the general public through the end of January, and Northeastern University in Boston banned spectators indefinitely.