Central Islip, N.Y. - East Coast Conference commissioner, Robert Dranoff has announced the expansion of the Men's and Women's Lacrosse conference membership by three and two respectively as voted on by the league's presidents. In the Spring of 2010 the conference will add Lake Erie College (Painesville, Ohio), Seton Hill University (Greensburg, Pa.) and Wheeling Jesuit University (Wheeling, W.Va.) to its men's lacrosse roster with the two former joining on the women's side as well.
"We are extremely pleased to have the opportunity to bring these three institutions into the East Coast Conference as associate members for lacrosse," Dranoff commented. "The chance to expand what we feel is an already excellent NCAA Division II lacrosse conference into two new states is truly exciting, and will provide our schools scheduling opportunities and increased exposure for their programs and institutions."
The growth in each sport will be two-fold for the conference, with current ECC member institutions University of Bridgeport (women's lacrosse), Mercy College (men's and women's lacrosse) and Queens College (women's lacrosse) adding lacrosse to their athletic offerings for the 2010 campaign.
Already established as a men's lacrosse powerhouse conference with just seven members, the ECC membership will grow to 10 strong in the sport in 2010. Both Wheeling Jesuit and Seton Hill have veteran programs in place whereas Mercy and Lake Erie will be in their inaugural year.
"I would call this the most important step for Men's Lacrosse in the conference's history," said Tim Boyle, head coach of the Dowling College men's lacrosse program. "The growth of men's collegiate lacrosse can best be seen at the Division II and III ranks, and if this growth is to continue we have an obligation to make sure that the new teams will have an opportunity to join a conference and legitimize their program early on. This growth will only help in the process to increase our championship format in the future."
"I feel that this is a great opportunity for the program," Lake Erie's head men's lacrosse coach, Greg Stocks remarked. "To be able to play in the best conference that Division II has to offer will only help the program get to where it wants to be. The competition is going to be extremely challenging for a first-year team with so many top lacrosse programs, so there is going to be a lot of work needed to be put in."
Competition and talent drive the success of the ECC men's lacrosse programs. The traditions in the conference have been strong with 12 NCAA national championships under their belt, and appearances in all but five title games since 1974. Growth will only add to the opportunities for ECC institutions to excel.
The ECC women's lacrosse programs have made a name for themselves on the national landscape as well. In the eight years of NCAA Division II championships, an ECC school has brought home the title four times.
Seton Hill is the lone established program of the five new teams to join ECC in the women's lacrosse arena. Bridgeport, Mercy and Queens, all current ECC member institutions, announced the addition of women's lacrosse programs earlier this year. As with its men's program, Lake Erie's women's lacrosse squad, will also be in its first year of competition during the 2010 campaign.
"The addition of Lake Erie and Seton Hill as associate members can only help the conference," said Tom Campolettano, Molloy College head women's lacrosse coach. "It will open up a new area of the country for us to recruit from as well as enhance the landscape of Division II lacrosse."
"The 2009-10 academic year will be an exciting one for ECC lacrosse. With the addition of the new associate members along with Bridgeport, Mercy and Queens adding one or both sports at their respective institutions, both membership and expectations for the conference are at an all-time high," said Dranoff. "We look forward to this new partnership with Seton Hill, Lake Erie and Wheeling Jesuit and to continuing our commitment to the sport of Lacrosse in the East Coast Conference."
