2018 MAAC Baseball Championship Program

2018 MAAC Baseball Championship

THE DISNEY MAAC STORY

The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC), along with Walt Disney World Resorts, enters its 19th year of hosting MAAC Championships in Lake Buena Vista, FL, as part of the conference’s mission to provide the best experience for its student-athletes and its fans. For the 2017-18 academic year, the MAAC Women’s Soc- cer Championship, featuring all 11 MAAC member schools, will be held at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex from October 28-November 1. The sports included in the rotation to be held at ESPN Wide World of Sports include Men’s and Women’s Cross Country, Women’s Soccer, and Volleyball. In the fall of 2016, the MAAC Men’s and Women’s Cross Country took place at the complex with Iona College claiming victory in both championships.

The championship operation at Disney allows the MAAC to provide its participating student-athletes, their families,

and fans a world-class sports championship experience. During the championship weekend in Disney, student-ath- letes have access to the playing facilities, on-site hotels, theme parks, and an awards banquet. These are designed to provide lasting memories for the student-athletes. The MAAC and ESPN have an agreement with Disney through 2018, which includes ESPN live broadcasting ele- ments for all the championships. ESPN’s state-of-the-art studios broadcast highlights of MAAC on-site tourna- ments throughout all Disney World Resort hotel properties as well as on ESPN3 and MAAC.TV. All MAAC contests for Volleyball, Women’s Soccer, Men’s and Women’s Cross Country, and Men’s and Women’s Golf are broadcast by ESPN’s on-site studios. The MAAC has also co-hosted with ESPN since 2006 the Advocare Invitational (previously the Old Spice Classic) at the ESPN Wide World of Sports complex. This eight-team tournament, which is held over Thanksgiving weekend, continues to draw elite Men’s Basketball teams to compete. One MAAC school is included in the field each year. Marist College represents the MAAC during the 2017 Advocare Invitational. During the 2015 Advocare Invitational, the two-time MAAC Men’s Basketball Player of the Year, Monmouth University’s Justin Robinson, set the tourna- ment scoring record with 77 points over three games to claim MVP honors. The MAAC Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships are held at the Disney complex. The Men’s and Women’s Golf teams compete at PGA-caliber courses during the spring and rotate between Disney’s Palm and Magnolia Arnold Palmer managed courses. The golf hosting agreement at Disney was recently extended through the 2018 champi- onships. The MAAC Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) volunteers at a local charity, assists in the championship operations, and holds its fall meeting during the MAAC Championship weekend while in Disney. Two MAAC SAAC commercials are produced at ESPN studios to be used during the season on MAAC school produced broadcasts.

16 EXCELLENCE IN ACADEMICS & ATHLETICS