The UAF women's swim team, ranked 11th in the nation by Division II coaches, won't be allowed to swim for conference or All-America honors this season.
The NCAA on Monday denied UAF's appeal of postseason bans in women's swimming and women's basketball, saying the penalties were appropriate given the extent of the violations that led to them.
"We are disappointed that the committee did not agree with our argument against a postseason ban on women's basketball and women's swimming," UAF athletics director Gary Gray said in a statement released by the university Monday. "We will move on and compete hard in every remaining competition and then start making plans for next season, when we will be eligible for postseason competition."
In its decision, the NCAA's Infractions Appeals Committee said it upheld the bans "because of the depth and breadth of violations created by the university's failure to develop and maintain an adequate certification process."
In November of 2014, the NCAA slapped UAF with several sanctions because of numerous eligibility infractions from 2007-08 to 2011-12. The university reported the violations in 2011 and 2012.
Four teams received postseason bans. The hockey team and men's basketball team served their postseason penalties last school year, but the women's swim team and women's basketball team did not because the pending appeal. Monday's ruling by the NCAA will make both teams ineligible for postseason competition this season.
The decision is a tough one for the swim team, which has recorded nine times that rank in the top 25 this season. Victoria Adams, an All-America swimmer from Anchorage, owns the season's sixth-fastest Division II time in the 100-yard backstroke (55.79 seconds) but will not be allowed to swim at the conference or national championships.
The women's basketball team was a less likely candidate for the postseason. The Nanooks are 0-3 in the 11-team Great Northwest Athletic Conference tournament, which sends six teams to the conference tournament.