| Centenary (N.J.), which played for the CSAC women's basketball title in 2020, will head to the Atlantic East Conference at the start of the 2021-22 academic year. Centenary athletics photo by Jenna Glinko |
Four months after losing Wesley College, the Atlantic East Conference (AEC) landed Centenary (N.J.) to keep its membership at seven teams.
“The Atlantic East is extremely excited to have Centenary join the conference,” said Dr. Chris Domes, President of Neumann University and AEC chair, in the conference’s release. “This addition gives the conference an enhanced presence in the Mid-Atlantic Region as it’s the first full member in New Jersey.”
The AEC formed at the beginning of the 2018-19 when Cabrini, Gwynedd Mercy, Immaculata, Neumann and Marywood left the Colonial States Athletic Conference and joined Marymount and Wesley from the Capital Athletic Conference.
The AEC completed a two-year waiting period during which it was ineligible for automatic qualifying bids (AQs) to the NCAA playoffs at the end of the 2019-20 season. The Conference looked like it might slip below the seven-team threshold needed for AQs in sports like men's and women's basketball when Delaware State University announced that it would close Wesley at the end of the 2020-21 season. But on Thursday, the conference announced it has drawn another member from CSAC.
"Our teams are excited about playing in the Atlantic East Conference," said Centenary athletic director Travis Spencer in the release. "Joining a new conference only breathes opportunity into our programs and institution. It's going to take some work, but our coaches and players will be ready for the challenge."
Centenary finished seventh of nine programs in the 2018-19 race for the Presidents Cup, which the CSAC awards to the athletics program with the highest competitive rating. The Cyclones will compete in the CSAC for field hockey and women’s lacrosse next season but will move to the AEC for others. Centenary also offers men's wrestling, which is not a sponsored sport for the CSAC or AEC.
The Cyclones’ departure drops the CSAC’s membership to 10 schools and eight for men's athletics.