#10: The NCAA issues the list of eight teams that will compete in the 2024 DIII Women’s Rowing Championship to be held over May 31 & June 1 at Harsha Lake in Bethel, Ohio. (link)
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#9: Southern Maine President Jacqueline Edmondson releases a letter to the USM community noting that the university “will lay off an unspecified number of employees” with those changes taking effect on Friday. Per the Portland Press Herald’s Joe Lawlor, “the jobs of director and associate director of the Russell Scholars program have been eliminated, as well as management positions including directors of advising, graduate studies, student engagement and leadership.” Edmondson: “In determining how to balance the priorities of the university, and evaluate reallocation of funds, the leadership team and I made challenging decisions. Our intention is that these decisions will position the university toward future growth … We acknowledge that this is painful for those directly affected, their teams, students, and our community, which is why we have done everything possible to avoid position eliminations until now.” Overall, USM’s enrollment numbers are down approximately 10 percent from five years ago. (link)
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#8: The latest NCAA DIII Softball Regional Rankings are also out with Tufts, UMass Dartmouth, Rochester, Lebanon Valley, Salisbury, Berry, Trine, UW-Oshkosh, Central and Linfield in the No. 1 positions. (link)
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#7: Dave Campbell’s Texas Football’s Cory Hogue asks the question of why the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference’s (SCAC) office remains in Atlanta, Ga., when eight of its 11 full-time members for 2024-25 are in Texas with the remaining schools in Colorado, Louisiana and one football affiliate member in Arkansas. For that answer, look no further than the league’s history and Commissioner Dwayne Hanberry. More from Hogue. (link)
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#6: The teams have also been released for the 2024 NCAA DIII Softball Championship with East Texas Baptist, Husson, Trine, Wisconsin-Oshkosh, Christopher Newport, Rowan, Case Western Reserve, Coe, Moravian, Virginia Wesleyan, Central, WashU, Berry, Tufts, Salisbury and Linfield earning regional top seeds. (link)
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#5: The NCAA releases the most recent DIII Baseball Regional Rankings with Salve Regina, Endicott, SUNY Cortland, Penn State Harrisburg, Salisbury, Christopher Newport, Denison, Spalding. UW-Whitewater and East Texas Baptist topping their respective regions. (link)
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#4: The field has been announced for the 2024 NCAA DIII Baseball Championship with Wisconsin-Whitewater, Wisconsin-Lacrosse, Denison, Spalding, Case Western Reserve, East Texas Baptist, Salisbury, Salve Regina, Christopher Newport, Misericordia, Johns Hopkins, Endicott, Penn State Harrisburg and Baldwin Wallace as region No. 1 seeds. (link)
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#3: The University Athletic Association (UAA) selects Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Commissioner Sarah Otey for the same role in Rochester. She succeeds Dick Rasmussen, who is retiring after serving as the Association’s only leader since its inception in 1987. WashU Chancellor and search committee co-chair Andrew Martin: “Sarah brings with her the experience needed to lead the UAA in an exciting direction. I look forward to working with her as she builds on our strong tradition of excellence in Division III athletics. I am grateful for the members of the search committee and Parker Search for their work in ensuring a successful hiring process of our commissioner.” Otey: "Thanks to Chancellor Martin, Dr. [WashU Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Anna] Gonzalez and the rest of the search committee for trusting me to serve as the next leader of the University Athletic Association. I look forward to partnering with all eight institutions to build upon their history of success and leverage their academic reputations and unmatched competitive excellence.” (link)
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#2: University Magazine releases a Niche Ranking list that “highlights the best colleges for athletics in 2024, considering factors such as sports facilities, coaching quality, team performance and overall student support.” Among the top 25, three DIII schools were included: No. 5 Wisconsin-Whitewater, No. 9 Mount Union and No. 24 Linfield. Overall, Baylor was selected as the nation’s premier college for athletics in 2024. Full list. (link)
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#1: Case Western Reserve Men’s Basketball HC Todd McGuinness has been issued a public reprimand from the DIII Men’s Basketball Committee. The rebuke results from comments made at a postgame news conference following the Spartans’ March 8 loss to Wisconsin-Platteville in a NCAA DII Men’s Basketball Tournament sectional match-up. After reviewing the comments, the committee “cited them as misconduct for being critical of the officiating and discrediting the championship.” (link)
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