August 22, 2014
What's new in 2014? - Part 1
This is Part 1 of a two part article about the various changes occurring for the new 2014 season. Part 1 will cover things like conference changes and changes in schools' membership, provisional status, and conference affiliation. Part 2 will cover rules changes and clarifications.
ASC FLIP-FLOP: MISSISSIPPI LEAVES DIVISION III, McMURRY RETURNS
After completing two years of the three-year transitional process to full Division II membership and a year after leaving the American Southwest Conference (ASC), McMurry University has reversed course, withdrawing its Division II bid in favor of a return to Division III. Their former ASC rival Mississippi College, whose bid to follow McMurry into the Division II reclassification process was initially denied one year ago before having that decision overturned on appeal, has now advanced to Year Two of the process. After continuing to participate in the ASC last season during the first year of their transition, Mississippi now starts play in Division II’s Gulf South Conference (GSF). McMurry, whose decision was financially driven, was accepted to enter the standard four-year Division III reclassification process starting this year, having the typical one-year exploratory period waived due to its former Division III membership. The school was also welcomed back into the ASC with integration to be phased in over the next few years.
POLYTECHNIC FIGHTING BLUE JAYS HAVE WINGS CLIPPED IN NYU MERGER
On January 1, 2014, after a five-year affiliation, the Polytechnic Institute of NYU (aka NYU-Poly) merged into New York University (NYU), becoming the NYU Polytechnic School of Engineering. The name was Polytechnic University when initial discussions of a merger took place ten years ago in 2004. Their connection actually goes back much further to a time when roles were reversed. With NYU facing financial hardships in the early 1970’s, their School of Engineering and Science was acquired by Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn precipitating a change in name to Polytechnic Institute of New York.
After finishing out the 2013-14 school year with separate athletic programs despite the completion of the merger, a single merged athletic program exists starting this season. Polytechnic’s programs will in essence be absorbed into NYU’s athletics which continues as the Violets, wearing purple and white, and participating in the University Athletic Associations (UAA). The Fighting Blue Jays are no more and the Skyline Conference losing a member.
NEW ACTIVE DIVISION III MEMBER SCHOOLS
• Centenary (La.) College of the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) has completed the four-year reclassification process from Division I to Division III and been approved for active membership status. The Ladies and Gents are eligible for the NCAA tournament starting this year.
PROVISIONAL/RECLASSIFYING UPDATES
• McMurry University, as mention above, is entering the four-year reclassification process this season. Three other schools have been accepted to begin the four-year provisional membership process into Division III: Berea College, Bryn Athyn College, and Pennsylvania College of Technology (aka Penn College). Berea is an independent this year after competing in the NAIA through last year. Bryn Athyn and Penn College are new members of the North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) this year. They join former NAIA school Illinois Institute of Technology (aka Illinois Tech) and former junior college Alfred State–SUNY College of Technology who are both being required to repeat year one of the provisional membership process. Alfred State, which shouldn’t be confused with the private Alfred University, and Illinois Tech are not yet affiliated with any Division III conference. These six schools are expected to become active D-III members for the 2018-19 school year at which time they will be eligible for the NCAA tournament. Games against these four schools are not considered as "in-region" Division III games until the schools reach Year Three of provisional membership.
• Iowa Wesleyan College is the only school entering their second year of provisional membership in Division III. Iowa Wesleyan began participation in the St, Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) last year and is on schedule to become an active D-III member elgible for the NCAA tournament beginning with the 2017-18 season. Games against Iowa Wesleyan are still not considered as "in-region" games until next year.
• Three schools have been approved to enter their third year of provisional membership:, Houghton College of the Empire 8 Conference, Southern Virginia University of the Capital Athletic Conference (CAC), and independent Valley Forge Christian College. These programs are scheduled to be eligible for NCAA tournament participation starting with the 2016-17 school year; however, games against these teams are now considered "in-region."
• SUNY-Canton and Sarah Lawrence College have been approved to enter their final year of provisional membership, having both been granted a waiver to consolidate Year Three and Year Four of the four-year standard process. The pair are now scheduled to be eligible for the NCAA tournament in 2015 and games against them are considered “in-region” this season. Sarah Lawrence begins participation in the Skyline this season while SUNY-Canton remains an independent.
• Additionally, Belhaven University has been approved to begin the one-year exploratory period, the prerequisite for being granted provisional Division III membership. Belhaven is an NAIA school looking to switch to the NCAA.
THE MUSIC HAS ALL BUT STOPPED ON THE CONFERENCE MUSICAL CHAIRS
The last several years have seem a considerable number of schools changing their conference affiliation and independents joining a conference, often as part of a domino effect spanning a few years. New conferences have even been formed. In contrast, only one school has switched Division III conferences this past off-season. Three provisional members have found a conference home, one school has returned from Division II while another has moved in the opposite direction, and one school has ceased to exist as a result of a merger. And that’s seems to be it for this year, though a couple schools have confirmed conference changes for upcoming seasons.
• As mentioned above, the American Southwest Conference (ASC) has seen Mississippi College leave as planned but unexpectedly former member McMurry University did a 180° two years into their transition to Division II and have returned to Division III and the ASC. Both schools were founding members of the ASC back in 1996. McMurry’s re-integration will be phased in. The War Hawks will only play a partial conference schedule this season and then a full conference slate starting next year. However, none of their games will count towards the conference standings until all athletic scholarships have been terminated, at which point their results are counted in the standings and their teams become eligible for regular-season titles. Only after completing the four-year reclassification process and being granted active Division III membership will McMurry be allowed to participate in the ASC post-season tournament for a chance at an automatic berth to the NCAA tournament.
The lone conference jumper this off-season is Elizabethtown College who bid farewell to the Commonwealth Conference to join several former rivals in the Landmark Conference for the league's eight season. The Blue Jays become the conference's ninth member and the move ends a 64-year affiliation with the Middle Atlantic Conference which, since 1998, is the umbrella organization of the Commonwealth and Freedom conferences. Elizabethtown will renew rivalries with three former Commonwealth opponents (Juniata, Moravian, Susquehanna) and two former Freedom members who were inter-divisional foes from earlier incarnations of the Middle Atlantic Conference (Drew and Scranton). In doing so, they end a storied conference rivalry with Messiah College, but, truth be told, some of the edge had come off the rivalry as Messiah has dominated the results for as many years now as it had been a see-saw affair. The two schools will meet in a non-conference tilt this fall.
• The North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) grows to 12 men's teams and 14 women's teams with the additions of Bryn Athyn College and Pennsylvania College of Technology (or Penn College). Both schools completed the mandatory exploratory year in the process of joining Division III and have been accepted as provisional members. Post-season eligibility is only expected for the two starting with the 2018 season after successful completion of the four-year provision membership process.
• Like the ASC, the Skyline Conference (CAC) has lost a member but gained another. Newcomer Sarah Lawrence College takes the place of Polytechnic Institute of NYU which no longer exists after its merger into New York University. As such the conference holds steady with ten men’s soccer teams and nine women’s teams. Sarah Lawrence is in the final year of provisional membership and not eligible for post-season play this year yet.
• The William Peace University men's team, which is only in its second year of existence, joins their women's side in the USA South Athletic Conference this season. Formerly the all-women's Peace College, the school took on its new name concurrently with becoming a coeducational institution starting with the 2012-13 school year. Their women's sports teams have participated in the USA South since the fall of 2003. Because William Peace is an active Division III member, the men's team is immediately eligible for conference post-season play and the NCAA tournament. With the addition, the USA South grows to 11 men's teams.
As we look ahead to the future seasons, the following moves and changes are already planned. Next fall, Wisconsin-Superior will join the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC), leaving the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) with just four men’s teams likely spelling the end of the conference’s men’s competition after just six years. The ASC will welcome Belhaven University to the fold next year in what is expected to be the school’s first year of provisional Division III membership. Belhaven men’s soccer team won the 2012 NAIA national championship. Finally, next year will be Carroll University’s twenty-fourth and last in the Midwest Conference as they move back to the Collegiate Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW), of which they were a member from 1955 to 1992. .
FINAL FOUR ON THE MOVE TO KANSAS CITY AND GREENSBORO
After five straight years in San Antonio, Tx., the 2014 and 2015 Final Fours have been awarded to the Kansas City Sports Commission and Foundation to be played at Swope Soccer Village located in historic Swope Park in Kansas City, Mo. Swope Soccer Village is the training center for MLS’s Sporting Kansas City and includes a natural grass championship field with seating for 1,500. Just one year old, the championship field opening in time to host the Big 12 Conference soccer championships last November.
Then in 2016 and 2017 it’s back to Greensboro, NC, where the first two pre-determined host site Final Four were held in 2004 and 2005 as well as again in 2008. Greensboro Sports Commission won hosting privileges with games to be played in 3,500-plus capacity UNC-Greensboro soccer stadium. This is a different venue from the one that hosted the previous Final Fours, that being McPherson Stadium in the Bryant Park Soccer Complex northeast of Greensboro. UNC-Greensboro, it should be remembered was a dominant force in Division III soccer in the 80’s, winning five titles in six years before moving up to Division I.
Comments or feedback for the author? Email Christan Shirk.
