Emerson cancels all weekend sporting activities following announcement of seven new positives Thursday

By Christopher Williams, Joey DuBois, Charlie McKenna and Dylan Rossiter / April 2, 2021

The men’s soccer team trains at Rotch Field in the South End three times per week.

Emerson canceled all sports games and practices this weekend, just one day after the college announced that seven students had tested positive for COVID-19, according to Athletic Director Patricia Nicol.

A Thursday night Instagram post from Emerson athletics announced the cancellation of a women’s lacrosse game “due to COVID-19 protocols.” The in-season teams affected by the college’s decision are baseball, men’s lacrosse, and softball. All out-of-season teams’ practices are also on hold for the weekend, Nicol said.

In a Thursday night email to the community, Assistant Vice President for Campus Life and “COVID Lead” Erik Muurisepp wrote that the new positive cases “seem to be linked and resulted in transmission within a group of people.” The positives came from four students on-campus and three students off-campus.

Muurisepp previously told The Beacon the college would only release an update like the one sent Thursday if they were observing any “concerning patterns.”

The number of students in quarantine and isolation on campus spiked Thursday and Friday — jumping from one student in isolation and three in quarantine on Tuesday to nine students in isolation and 28 in quarantine by Friday.

The college has yet to publicly identify the group of people impacted by the positive tests, but restrictions have not been announced on any campus groups aside from athletics.

The Fitness Center remains open to all members of the Emerson community.

About the Contributors

Christopher Williams, Sports Editor

Christopher Williams was promoted to Sports Editor in September 2020 after serving as a correspondent covering Emerson College athletics for a year. In addition to The Beacon, he is a sports reporter for Emerson's news station, WEBN, writer for The United Stand, co-host of "The Golden Boot Podcast," and sportscaster for Emerson Channel Sports. He previously covered the Washington Capitals for The Hockey Writers. Williams is originally from Albrightsville, PA.

Joey DuBois, Deputy Sports Editor

Joey DuBois joined The Berkeley Beacon in the Spring 2021 semester as the Deputy Sports Editor. Joey has written independently for a few years as a blogger, but his role with the Beacon is his first formal print experience. He was inspired to join the organization to share the stories of unsung athletes, both on campus and in the larger Boston community.

Charlie McKenna

Charlie McKenna graduated in 2022. He is from Los Angeles, CA and served as The Beacon's Editor-in-Chief during the Fall 2021 semester, overseeing all of the paper's print and digital content in addition to daily operations. He has contributed to The Beacon since the Fall 2019 semester and previously served as a Content Managing Editor, the Deputy Express Editor, and the SGA correspondent. McKenna's work has appeared in The Boston Globe and in his limited free time, he can be found listening to Steely Dan.

Dylan Rossiter, Emerson '21

Dylan Rossiter is the Director of Advertising and Events for the State House News Service, where he also serves as General Manager for the company's flagship newsletter, MASSterList. He served as The Berkeley Beacon's Operations Managing Editor, overseeing finance, institutional advancement, and newsroom administration from May 2019 to July 2021. He is the only known disabled managing editor in the history of The Beacon. During his first semester at Emerson, Rossiter became Digital Strategist, where he overhauled The Beacon's website and helped transition the organization to a multi-platform daily. He guided The Beacon's digital platforms in that role, helping to triple the newspaper's online audience. Rossiter also helped develop and supervise the launch of The Berkeley Beacon Magazine, podcast unit, subscription service, and donor support program. He also provided editorial support amid breaking news and Irregular operations. While at Emerson, Rossiter worked as an Assignment Editor with NBCUniversal Local. He graduated Emerson in May 2021 with a BS in Journalism.