LEWISTON — Numerous Bates athletic teams return to action this week after a year on the sideline because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

The Bates women’s basketball team plays at Colby on Saturday at 1 p.m. to begin an abbreviated season. The Bobcats then face the rival Mules again on Sunday at 1 p.m. at Alumni Gym on the Bates campus.

No fans will be allowed at home games and the games will be streamed online.

The Bates men’s basketball team begins its season next Saturday at home against Bowdoin.

Both lacrosse teams will be in action on Saturday in a doubleheader against Saint Joseph’s. The games will be played in Standish, with the women’s game beginning at 1 p.m. and the men’s game starting at 4 p.m.

The women’s lacrosse team was the last Bates team to compete on campus, on March 10, 2020.

Spring sports such as lacrosse, baseball, softball, tennis, rowing and track and field will have the opportunity to compete for conference championships and beyond this season, although their abbreviated schedules, in particular for conference play, are still being formulated at this time, according to a school news release.