The Mount Mary athletic department announced this week that it will be canceling its 2012-13 basketball season due to the inability to field a complete roster.

“The difficult decision was based on the fact that only three healthy players could play to start — everyone else had medical issues that they were unsure if and when they could participate,” first-year head coach and Mount Mary athletic director Michelle Guyant-Holloway said. “We had low numbers at the start of the season and through several and a variety of efforts to gain interest of other students on campus, no one else could commit to the season.”

Guyant-Holloway was forced to withdraw the basketball squad from Mount Mary’s first five contests, including a season-opening Tip-Off Classic tournament at crosstown rival Alverno  in mid-November. As roster numbers failed to increase after the Thanksgiving break, Mount Mary decided to sacrifice the rest of its 18-game slate for the remainder of the 2012-13 season.

Guyant-Holloway had resigned from the head coaching position at Shenandoah last June after six seasons, compiling a 78-78 record.

Under the governance of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, membership stipulations assert that each institution’s athletic programs must compete in a minimum number of contests — for basketball that minimum is 18. Upon cancelation of Mount Mary’s home game against Northland, the institution is in violation of this rule (17.5.5.1 of the NCAA Handbook).

Guyant-Holloway said the department is looking into waiver-filing options with the NCAA, but should they be denied, “we will most likely have a year of probation — meaning we will have to field all our teams with a full schedule next season without issues.”

Guyant-Holloway said she was very gracious toward the handful of athletes that were practicing hard for the last few weeks, despite the uncertain status of the season. And the department was apologetic toward Mount Mary’s opponents this season, as the late notice may have put their own schedules in a bind.

“It was a very hard decision and I feel bad for the players that wanted to play,” Guyant-Holloway said. “It’s not an easy way to potentially end someone’s career or the work that they put in to prepare for the season. It’s also tough for opponents to try and find a make-up game at this point, but most coaches have been understanding.”