NE10 LANDING PAGE - DII 50th ANNIVERSARY

Long History of Athletic Success at Adelphi.

MANSFIELD, Mass. - When the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) officially formed Division II in 1973, Adelphi University was one of 193 schools to join as a founding member. Over the past 50 years, Adelphi's involvement in Division II has included membership in three different conferences and resulted in 17 national championships. 

Though Adelphi always operated as a Division II member, some of its sports participated in Division I for a period of time - including men's soccer (1976-2012), softball (1972-94) and men's lacrosse (1981-93). Currently, the University sponsors 23 varsity sports, with all but one competing at the Division II ranks (women's bowling). 

Originally a member of the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) - a non-playing conference - from 1953 to 1989, Adelphi joined the New York Collegiate Athletic Conference (NYCAC), which later became the East Coast Conference (ECC). Through the pursuits of President Robert A. Scott (2000-2015) and Director of Athletics Robert Hartwell (1986-2013), Adelphi joined the Northeast-10 Conference in the fall of 2009. 

Hartwell, a member of the NE10 Hall of Fame Class of 2021, provided leadership in Adelphi's transition to the NE10 - which quickly resulted in success with multiple national championships in women's lacrosse (2010 and 2011). Adelphi also won its first NE10 Presidents' Cup in 2012-13, the first of four Presidents' Cup honors for the athletics department since becoming an NE10 member. 

"This is an opportunity for Adelphi to align itself with similar academic and athletic institutions," said Hartwell at the time of Adelphi's move to the NE10. "We are also grateful that our teams will have full conference schedules which will make it easier for our student-athletes to experience competitive contests. In addition, their non-athletic programs and accomplishments closely mirror our own."

NOTABLE ACCOMPLISHMENTS

• Among Adelphi's many athletic accomplishments in Division II, none have been more impressive than the University's dominance in the sport of lacrosse. Adelphi men's lacrosse has won seven national championships and women's lacrosse has won nine - both of which are records among all NCAA Division II institutions. The Adelphi men appeared in six of the first seven DII championship finals between 1993 and 1999. The Adelphi women are the only lacrosse program to pull off a "three-peat" - three consecutive national championship titles from 2009 to 2011. 
• From the award's inception in 1994, Adelphi won six of the first 11 Commissioner's Cups presented by the NYCAC. The school's seven Cup wins stood as a NYCAC/ECC record - the most by any institution - until 2016 when Adelphi was seven years into its NE10 tenure. Upon joining the NE10, Adelphi captured four Presidents' Cups in five years, ranging between 2012 and 2017. Adelphi has not finished lower than third in the NE10 Presidents' Cup standings since its first victory in 2012-13 - proving itself to be among the conference's elite athletics programs. 
• Adelphi has a long celebrated history with its student-athletes being named Academic All-Americans, tallying 49 honorees since 1985. Last spring, softball pitcher Lindsey Hibbs became the first Adelphi student-athlete to ever be named the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Division II Academic All-American of the Year in her respective sport. 

WHAT THEY ARE SAYING ABOUT DIVISION II

Danny McCabe, Director of Athletics and Campus Recreation

"As one of Division II's original members, Adelphi has called DII home for 50 years. Not only have our teams enjoyed tremendous success on the fields of play, with national championships in men's soccer, men's lacrosse, and women's lacrosse among numerous other team accomplishments, but our student-athletes have benefitting from competing in DII. We have embraced DII's motto of "Life in the Balance" on our Adelphi campus as well.  Our student-athletes are involved in community service, internships, career planning and even working part-time jobs.  These things give our Panthers a well-rounded student-athlete experience and prepare them for life after college. Employers seek out student-athletes because of their ability to lead, work in teams and manage their workload and these are attributes that come directly from competing in DII athletics. The first 50 years in DII have been a great ride and we look forward to the next 50 years!"

Danielle MacKnight, Volleyball Head Coach/Assistant Athletic Director

"I've found that Division II really allows coaches and players alike to truly live a life in the balance. After experiencing Division I from a student-athlete perspective, I have found a home at the Division II level because that's what fits me best. It allows us to give our players (and staff) the break during the summer so that come mid-August we are mentally, physically and emotionally ready to go and are fully committed to the next few months. Adelphi's position in Division II has given us the opportunity to produce athletes that are not only successful athletically, but are prepared for life after volleyball and ultimately following college. In my tenure, I've had athletes go on to pursue postgraduate degrees, continue playing volleyball at the semi-professional level, become doctors, start families and more. Having the experience as a Division II athlete has been fruitful not only for the accolades or championships won, but for transition into "real life" as they say."

Division II 50th Anniversary - Adelphi University

ABOUT THE NE10
The NE10 is an association of 12 diverse institutions serving student-athletes across 24 NCAA Division II sports. Together we build brilliant futures by embracing the journey of every student-athlete.

Each year, 4,500 of those student-athletes compete in conference championships in 24 sports, making the NE10 the largest DII conference in the country in terms of sport sponsorship. Leading the way in the classroom, on the field and within the community, the NE10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.