2018 MAAC Softball Championship Program

2018 MAAC Softball Championship

2018 MAAC Softball Championship

The MAAC has also been a leader in the forefront of technology, expanding the notoriety of the league into cyberspace. In 2017, the league reached a conference-wide agreement with SIDEARM Sports, to design and host the MAAC web page. MAACSports.com has been a great success, providing fans with fresh content, up-to-date results, live and on-demand video, and an online merchandise store.

for student-athletes as the conference announced the formation of the MAAC Men’s and Women’s Lacrosse leagues. The men’s league began competition in the spring of 1996, while the women’s league commenced in the spring of 1997. Since their inception as associate sports leagues, both Men’s and Women’s Lacrosse have been upgraded to full MAAC sports. The men’s league currently consists of six MAAC schools (Canisius, Manhattan, Marist, Monmouth, Quinnipiac, and Siena along with one associate member Detroit Mercy). The women’s league features competition among nine MAAC institutions (Canisius, Fairfield, Iona, Manhattan, Marist, Monmouth, Niagara, Quinnipiac, and Siena). The 2017 Men’s Lacrosse Championship Game aired on ESPNU and Sirius XM for the first time in history. In the spring of 2014, the MAAC expanded the championship field to six teams in Men’s and Women’s Soccer, Volleyball, Women’s Lacrosse, Softball, and Baseball.

In September 2011, the conference announced the launch of MAAC.TV, the league’s first broadband network. Eight

schools (Canisius, Fairfield, Iona, Manhattan, Marist, Monmouth, Rider, and Saint Peter’s) were part of the original network. As of 2016-17 MAAC.TV hosted content for 10 schools and was the home to 151 live broadcasts. By 2018 MAAC.TV will become a true network, hosting content from all 11 institutions. In May 2014, the MAAC continued to grow its partnership with ESPN3 announcing the launch of the MAAC Branded ESPN3 Channel. All MAAC and school produced ESPN3 broadcasts are viewable as live or archived contents for all MAAC sports. During the 2016-17 season, Canisius, Iona, Fairfield, Monmouth, and Siena broadcasted a total of 100 combined school produced broadcasts. Under the new ESPN agreement, by the 2019-20 academic year all MAAC institutions will have ESPN3 school production capabilities. The initiative increases the MAAC’s long-term partnership with ESPN and is concurrent with the development of school based production facilities on the conference’s member campuses.

Academics and Athletics The MAAC prides itself on the accomplishments of its student-athletes in the classroom, as well as on the field. Mary Beth Riley, a 1991 graduate of Canisius, was the first recipient of the NCAA Woman of the Year Award. In the fall of 1998, Erin Whalen, a member of the Iona Women’s Rowing team, was awarded one of the nation’s 32 Rhodes Scholarships for academic achievement and civic leadership. The most recent APR’s are multiyear rates based on scores from the 2012-13, 2013-14, and 2015-16 academic years. All 11 MAAC institutions had at least one team that posted multi-year APR’s in the top 10% of all squads in each sport, with Siena having eight teams, Fairfield, Iona, and Marist all having six teams respectively in the top 10%. Men’s Golf and Women’s Cross Country programs led all MAAC sports with five recipients each. First-class facilities are the standard within the MAAC, as teams regularly play in top-notch arenas, such as Madison Square Garden, Barclays Center, Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, MassMutual Center, KeyBank Center, Times Union Center, Webster Bank Arena, Mohegan Sun Arena, and Sun National Bank Center. This year, the MAAC takes the 2017 Women’s Soccer Championships to the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, FL from October 27-November 1. The 2018 MAAC Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships will be held once again at Disney’s Magnolia Golf Course from April 19-22. In the past several years, a number of the MAAC schools have enjoyed success in national postseason play. This past season, Quinnipiac’s Women’s Basketball team won its first NCAA Championship game in program history and became the first MAAC school to advance to the Sweet 16 since Marist in 2007. The Bobcats defeated Marquette University and the University of Miami en route to their Sweet 16 appearance against the University of South Carolina. In 2015, Siena’s Women’s Basketball team became the first MAAC Women’s Basketball program to make it to a postseason championship game. The Saints advanced all the way to the title contest of the Women’s Basketball Invitational (WBI) where Siena fell to Louisiana-Lafayette. In 2007, the Marist Women’s Basketball team advanced to the Sweet 16 before falling to the eventual National Champion, the University of Tennessee. The Red Foxes have recorded an additional five NCAA wins since their run in 2007. Saint Peter’s Men’s Basketball team claimed the 2017 CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT) title, to become the first MAAC program to win a national postseason championship since Siena’s Men’s Basketball team in 2014. The Saints earned the league’s first basketball postseason championship in its history by winning the 2014 College Basketball Invitational (CBI). In 2013, the MAAC had a record six Men’s Basketball programs participate in postseason play – Iona (NCAA Championship), Niagara (NIT), Canisius, Fairfield, Loyola, and Rider (CIT). Canisius and Loyola both advanced to the Quarterfinal Round, while Rider reached the second round. In 2012, the MAAC had two teams advance to the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship for the first time in 16 years, with Loyola earning the league’s automatic bid and Iona garnering an at-large bid.

The MAAC President for the 2017-18 academic year is Dr. Brennan O’Donnell, the President of Manhattan College. The Vice- President is Gregory G. Dell’Omo, the President of Rider University. Commissioner Rich Ensor serves as the league’s Secretary/ Treasurer. , Eugene Doris Director of Athletics at Fairfield University, will chair the Committee on Athletic Administration, and Traci Murphy, Senior Woman Administrator at Canisius College will serve as Vice Chair.

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