The Northeast Conference (NEC) is a collegiate athletic conference whose schools are members of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Teams in the NEC compete in Division I for all sports; football competes in the Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS). Participating schools are located principally in the Northeastern United States, from which the conference derives its name.
A lucky loser is a sports competitor who loses a match in a knockout tournament or loses in qualifying, but who then enters the main draw, usually when another competitor withdraws during the tournament because of illness, injury, or other reasons. The lucky loser then re-enters the competition, normally in place of the withdrawn competitor.
The Fairleigh Dickinson Knights refer to the 17 intercollegiate sports teams representing Fairleigh Dickinson University's Metropolitan campus in Teaneck & Hackensack, New Jersey. Fairleigh Dickinson University or (FDU) offers a variety of sports on the Division I level. The women's bowling team has won two national titles: in 2006 and 2010. The men's basketball team has reached the NCAA Tournament seven times in the program's history. The Knights compete in the NCAA Division I and are members of the Northeast Conference.
The 2012 NCAA Division I men's soccer tournament is a single-elimination tournament involving 48 teams to determine the champion of the 2012 NCAA Division I men's soccer season. It was the 54th edition of the tournament. Indiana defeated Georgetown, 1–0, to win its 8th national title.
The Northeast Conference soccer tournament is the conference soccer championship of the NCAA Division I Northeast Conference. In the current format, all eligible teams compete to the single-elimination tournament, with all games being played at the home field of the higher seed. The winner of the tournament receives an automatic berth to the NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship. The NEC started fielding men's soccer games in 1985 and started a conference tournament in 1989, Fairleigh Dickinson won the inaugural championship.
The 2017 St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers men's soccer team represent St. Francis College during the 2017 NCAA Division I men's soccer season. The Terrier's home games are played at Brooklyn Bridge Park, Pier 5. The team has been a member of the Northeast Conference since 1981 and is coached by Tom Giovatto, who was in his eleventh year at the helm of the Terriers.
The 2017 Northeast Conference men's soccer season was the 37th season of men's varsity soccer in the conference.
The 2017–18 Wagner Seahawks men's basketball team represented Wagner College during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Seahawks were led by sixth-year head coach Bashir Mason. They played their home games at Spiro Sports Center on the school's Staten Island campus as members of the Northeast Conference. The Seahwawks finished the season 23–10, 14–4 in NEC play to win the NEC regular season championship. In the NEC tournament, they defeated Central Connecticut and Robert Morris before losing to LIU Brooklyn in the championship game. As a regular season conference champion who did not win their conference tournament, they received an invitation to the National Invitation Tournament where they lost in the first round to Baylor.
The 2017 Northeast Conference women's soccer tournament was the postseason women's soccer tournament for the Northeast Conference held on November 3 and 5, 2017. The three-match tournament took place at University Stadium in Teaneck, New Jersey, home of the regular season co-champions and tournament #1 seed Fairleigh Dickinson Knights. The four-team single-elimination tournament consisted of two rounds based on seeding from regular season conference play. The defending champions were the Saint Francis Red Flash and they successfully defended their title, winning the penalty shoot-out tiebreaking procedure following a tie with Fairleigh Dickinson in the final. This was the fourth Northeast Conference tournament title for the Saint Francis women's soccer program, all of which have come under the direction of head coach Brenda van Stralen.
The 2018 Northeast Conference women's soccer tournament was the postseason women's soccer tournament for the Northeast Conference held on November 2 and 4, 2018. The three-match tournament took place at Central Connecticut Soccer Field in New Britain, Connecticut, home of the regular season champions and tournament #1 seed Central Connecticut State Blue Devils. The four-team single-elimination tournament consisted of two rounds based on seeding from regular season conference play. The defending champions were the Saint Francis Red Flash but they were unable to defend their title, losing 2–1 in the final to Central Connecticut. This was the ninth Northeast Conference tournament title for the Central Connecticut women's soccer program, seven of which have come under the direction of head coach Mick D'Arcy.
The 2019 Northeast Conference men's soccer season was the 39th season of men's varsity soccer in the conference.
The 2019 Northeast Conference women's soccer tournament was the postseason women's soccer tournament for the Northeast Conference held on November 8 and 10, 2019. The three-match tournament took place at Central Connecticut Soccer Field in New Britain, Connecticut, home of the regular season champions and tournament #1 seed Central Connecticut State Blue Devils. The four-team single-elimination tournament consisted of two rounds based on seeding from regular season conference play. The defending champions were the Central Connecticut State Blue Devils who successfully defended their title, defeating the Fairleigh Dickinson Knights 1–0 in the final. This was the tenth Northeast Conference tournament title for the Central Connecticut women's soccer program, eight of which have come under the direction of head coach Mick D'Arcy.
The 2020 St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers men's soccer team represent St. Francis College during the 2020 NCAA Division I men's soccer season. The Terrier's home games are played at Brooklyn Bridge Park, Pier 5. The team has been a member of the Northeast Conference since 1981 and is coached by Tom Giovatto, who was in his fourteenth year at the helm of the Terriers.
The 2021 Northeast Conference women's soccer tournament was the postseason women's soccer tournament for the Northeast Conference held on November 5 and 7, 2021. The three-match tournament took place at Central Connecticut Soccer Field in New Britain, Connecticut, home of the regular season champions and tournament #1 seed Central Connecticut State Blue Devils. The four-team single-elimination tournament consisted of two rounds based on seeding from regular season conference play. The defending champions were the Central Connecticut State Blue Devils, who won a tournament that was shortened to a single game in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Central Connecticut State successfully defended their title, defeating the Fairleigh Dickinson Knights 3–0 in the final. This was the twelfth Northeast Conference tournament title for the Central Connecticut women's soccer program, ten of which have come under the direction of head coach Mick D'Arcy. This was also the fourth straight title for Central Connecticut and Mick D'Arcy. As tournament champions, Central Connecticut earned the Northeast Conference's automatic berth into the 2021 NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Tournament.
The 2022–23 Northeast Conference men's basketball season began with practices in October 2022, followed by the start of the 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's basketball season in November. Conference play started in the last week of December and ended in March 2023.
The 2022 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Tournament was the 64th edition of the NCAA Division I men's soccer tournament, a postseason tournament to determine the national champion of the 2022 NCAA Division I men's soccer season. The tournament started on November 17 and culminated with the Men's College Cup, the semifinals and finals of the tournament, which was played on December 9 and December 12 in Cary, North Carolina.
The 2022–23 Fairleigh Dickinson Knights men's basketball team represented Fairleigh Dickinson University in the 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Knights, led by first-year head coach Tobin Anderson, played their home games at the Rothman Center in Hackensack, New Jersey as members of the Northeast Conference. They finished the regular season 17–14, 10–6 in NEC play to finish in a tie for second place. As the No. 2 seed in the NEC tournament, they defeated St. Francis Brooklyn and Saint Francis (PA) to advance to the championship game where they lost to Merrimack. However, because Merrimack was in a transition period from Division II to Division I and ineligible for the NCAA Tournament, the Knights received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament as the No. 16 seed in the East region. In the First Four, they defeated Texas Southern to advance to the First Round. There they became only the second No. 16 seed ever to upset a No. 1 seed by defeating Purdue. The Knights lost in the Second Round to Florida Atlantic.
The 2023 Northeast Conference Men's Basketball Tournament was the postseason men's basketball tournament for the Northeast Conference for the 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The tournament took place on three dates between March 1, and March 7, 2023, and all tournament games were played on home arenas of the higher-seeded school. The winner, Merrimack, did not receive the conference's automatic bid to the 2023 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament due to not being eligible because of a transition from Division II. Instead, the runner-up, Farleigh Dickinson, earned lucky loser status and was awarded the conference's automatic bid.
The 2022 Northeast Conference women's soccer tournament was the postseason women's soccer tournament for the Northeast Conference held from October 30 to November 6, 2022. The three-match tournament took place at the higher seeded team in each match-up. The six-team single-elimination tournament consisted of three rounds based on seeding from regular season conference play. The defending champions were the Central Connecticut State Blue Devils. Central Connecticut State was unable to defend their title, losing to the Fairleigh Dickinson Knights 2–1 in the Semifinal. Fairleigh Dickinson went on to win the tournament over Sacred Heart in penalties in the Final. This was the second Northeast Conference tournament title for the Fairleigh Dickinson women's soccer program, both of which have come under the direction of head coach Eric Teepe. As tournament champions, Fairleigh Dickinson earned the Northeast Conference's automatic berth into the 2022 NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Tournament.
The 2023–24 Northeast Conference men's basketball season began with practices in October 2023, followed by the start of the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball season on November 6. Conference play will start in early January and end in early March 2024. This is the 43rd season of Northeast Conference men's basketball. Merrimack is the defending regular-season and conference tournament champion. Due to Merrimack's ineligibility as a team transitioning from Division II, Fairleigh Dickinson represented the conference in the 2023 NCAA tournament and advanced to the second round.
