Lacrosse, Swimming & Diving, and Baseball to Join AMCC
The Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) recently accepted Alfred State as an affiliate member in men's lacrosse, men's and women's swimming & diving, and baseball. The Pioneers will begin play in men's lacrosse and swimming & diving in 2016-17 and in baseball in 2017-18.
Alfred State Athletic Director Dr. Kelly Higgins looks forward to a long and strong relationship with the AMCC. "My thanks to the AMCC for their efforts in this process. Commissioner Ledwin and the league leadership have been great to work with. The AMCC is a great fit for us competitively, philosophically, and geographically. It gives our student-athletes an immediate opportunity to be recognized for their athletic, academic, and personal achievements on the conference level, to make a run for conference championships, and we hope to build upon this relationship in the future. It also gives us the opportunity to participate in NCAA championships starting in 2018."
She noted that Alfred State is working hard to complete their NCAA Division III membership transition. "Athletic Director Kelly Higgins and his staff continue to move their program forward, and conference membership is an important aspect of that. Celebrating 20 years in 2016-17, the AMCC is in a very different place with our growth, but just as importantly we continue to look for ways to strengthen our programs as well. Baseball is well established, but adding a tenth team puts us at full capacity. Swimming and diving is growing as a conference sport, and adding Alfred State has enabled us to finally establish a stand-alone championship this coming season. And together with D'Youville on the women's side, they help men's lacrosse take a foothold in our championship portfolio as well."
The AMCC, which will celebrate its 20th season in 2016-17, is an alliance of NCAA Division III institutions whose mission is to provide students with an intercollegiate athletics program that advances their educational experience in a way that is safe, equitable, respectful, rewarding, and balanced.
Current members of the AMCC include D'Youville (Buffalo, NY), Franciscan University (Steubenville, OH), Hilbert (Hamburg, NY), LaRoche (Pittsburgh, PA), Medaille (Buffalo, NY), Mount Aloysius (Cresson, PA), Penn State Altoona (Altoona, PA), Penn State Behrend (Erie, PA), Pitt Bradford (Bradford, PA), and Pitt Greensburg (Greensburg, PA).
Higgins is excited about the progress the Athletic Department has made over the last year. "We continue to take the steps necessary to show our colleagues that we belong on the same NCAA playing field with them. We were also recently informed by the NCAA that we have been approved to move into our third year of provisional status. As with football announcing membership with the ECFC earlier this year, this will be the first-ever four-year NCAA conference membership for the Pioneers in these sports.
For more information on the AMCC, visit: www.amccsports.org.
