Jordan Bowser will be a junior when Elizabethtown first competes in the Landmark Conference. Elizabethtown athletics photo

Sanford J. Ungar, president of Goucher College and chair of the Landmark Conference Executive Board, announced today that Elizabethtown has accepted an invitation to join the Landmark as its ninth full member, beginning July 1, 2014.

Elizabethtown is the conference's first new full member since the conference began play in the 2007-08 season.

• More moves in Conference Shuffle
• December 2005: Eight schools break away
• June 2006: Seven choose Landmark name
• Nov. 2006: Scranton joins Landmark

“We welcome Elizabethtown College, an institution that shares the other eight Landmark members’ educational philosophies and high academic standards,” said Ungar. “I am sure the addition of Elizabethtown will build upon the reputation of our conference and enhance the quality of the college experience of all of our student-athletes.”

“We look forward to continuing our long tradition of athletic success in a new conference,” said Elizabethtown president, Carl J. Strikwerda.  “Elizabethtown College and the institutions in the Landmark Conference already know each other well, and we look forward to spirited competition on the field and good working relationships in overseeing the conference.”

Elizabethtown, which sponsors 22 varsity sports, joins Catholic, Drew, Goucher, Juniata, Moravian, Scranton, Susquehanna and the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy.

"I am pleased, professionally and personally, about this opportunity,” said Nancy Latimore, Elizabethtown's athletic director. “The eight institutions that formed the Landmark six short years ago, have very quickly created one of Division III's most-respected athletic conferences. We are thrilled to become part of the Landmark Conference and are confident that our student-athletes will benefit immensely. It is a perfect fit for Elizabethtown."

"The Landmark Conference athletic directors are delighted to welcome Elizabethtown into the conference,” said Mike Allen, athletic director at Catholic University. “Many of us have had the pleasure of competing with Elizabethtown in the past and have great respect for the quality of its institution and athletic programs.  Elizabethtown will be an excellent addition to the conference and we look forward to the Blue Jays joining us as a full member."

Elizabethtown has competed against many of the schools that make up the Landmark Conference and has a rich history with geographic rivals such as Juniata, Moravian, Susquehanna, and Scranton.

The move to the Landmark Conference in 2014-15 will bring to a close Elizabethtown’s 63-year affiliation with the Middle Atlantic Conference.

"Leaving the Middle Atlantic Conference will be bittersweet. Quite a few members of our athletics staff have been associated with the MAC for a very long time, and hold many games, championships, and people close to our hearts. We hope to continue our rivalries with some of our MAC friends in the years ahead," Latimore said.