| Piedmont men's basketball and other men's sports
will be able to compete for an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament
in the USA South starting with the 2012-13 season. Piedmont athletics file photo |
Piedmont has announced plans to become the newest member of the
USA South Athletic Conference. Piedmont president Ray Cleere,
athletic director John Dzik, and USA South commissioner Rita Wiggs
made the announcement at a joint news conference at the
college’s Johnny Mize Athletic Center in Demorest, Ga.
“We are delighted to accept the invitation for membership
offered to Piedmont College by the USA South Athletic
Conference,” Dzik said. “Our coaches and student
athletes look forward to forging new relationships, and we believe
Piedmont will provide the USA South growth, stability, and quality
athletic competition.”
The Great South Athletic Conference is too small to qualify for an automatic bid to the Division III NCAA Tournament in men's sports. Maryville and LaGrange have been offered full membership in the USA South as well and have until May 1 to decide.
Huntingdon, the only full Division III member of the GSAC in
men's sports that has not received an invite to the USA South, is
playing wait and see. "We won't know anything definite until the
May 1 deadline and then we'll explore options," Huntingdon athletic
director and women's basketball coach Buzz Phillips said. "We're
still going to compete and play."
The move to the USA South Athletic Conference comes a little over
a decade after Piedmont became a charter member of the GSAC.
Piedmont’s move ensures that all student-athletes at
Piedmont will now have the opportunity for postseason
competition beyond conference tournament play.
Cleere noted that Piedmont has already faced USA South teams over
recent years in numerous non-conference games in a variety of
sports. “We are vigorously accepting this invitation to join
the USA South, we believe we can be highly competitive in the
league, and we look forward to our new athletic
associations,” Cleere said.
Wiggs said Piedmont shared a similar academic and athletic profile
with the existing USA South teams. “The conference has
conducted extensive reviews, and the time is now right for USA
South and Piedmont College to become partners for the
future,” said Wiggs of the newest conference addition.
Dzik said Piedmont will continue to compete in GSAC play during
the upcoming 2011-12 school year before making the switch to USA
South competition in the 2012-13 school year. The college will
enter as a full member and will be immediately eligible for
automatic bids to compete in post-season NCAA tournaments in all
sports.
The USA South Conference currently includes 10 full members with
the largest being Christopher Newport with 4,793 students while the
smallest is Peace with 662 students, all women. Piedmont currently
has about 2,800 students overall with 1,200 enrolled at the
Demorest campus. Other members of USA South include Averett,
Ferrum, Greensboro, Mary Baldwin, Meredith , Methodist, N.C.
Wesleyan and Shenandoah. Shenandoah leaves to join the Old Dominion
Athletic Conference in 2012-13.
The conference also has three associate members, Agnes Scott and
LaGrange, both of which compete only in women’s lacrosse; and
Maryville, which competes in football.
Piedmont will compete in USA South conference play in volleyball,
softball, baseball, soccer, basketball, cross country, golf, and
tennis. The school will add men’s lacrosse to its list of
sports in the spring of 2012, while the women’s lacrosse team
anticipates USA South conference play in 2013.