Association | Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association |
---|---|
Sport | College Lacrosse |
Founded | 2020 |
President | Panchito Ojeda |
Divisions | 2 |
No. of teams | 22 |
Most recent champion(s) | Division 1: Liberty (2nd Title) Division 2: UNC Charlotte (3rd title) (2024) |
Most titles | Division 1: Virginia Tech & Liberty (Tied at 2 Titles) Division 2: UNC Charlotte (3 Titles) |
Official website | https://mcla.us/conference/alc |
The Atlantic Lacrosse Conference (ALC) is a lacrosse conference in the United States that participates in the Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association (MCLA). The ALC operates in the U.S. states of Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina and South Carolina and is split into two divisions, Division I and Division II. The conference is governed by an executive board and the team that wins the conference's divisional playoffs receive an automatic bid to the MCLA National Championship. [1]
At the end of the 2020 season, the MCLA Board of Directors announced that they voted to split the SouthEastern Lacrosse Conference (SELC), resulting in the founding of a new conference, which would become the Atlantic Lacrosse Conference. Its founding members were Clemson, East Carolina, George Washington, Liberty, North Carolina State, Tennessee, Virginia Tech and West Virginia. [2]
At the end of the 2021 season, the ALC announced its intentions to expand and create a division 2 component to the conference. The founding division 2 teams were Appalachian State, Coastal Carolina, Elon, UNC-Charlotte, UNC-Wilmington and Wake Forest, all of which moved over from the SELC. It was also announced at that time that Pittsburgh and Temple had moved from the Continental Lacrosse Conference (CLC) to the ALC, joining its Division 1 teams. [3]
The 2023 season added three new division 2 teams, College of Charleston, The Citadel, and Davidson College, all whom moved over from the SELC. The 2024 season added the College of William & Mary, Longwood University, and a division-2 team for Virginia Tech.
Season | Champion | Score | Runner-up | Link |
---|---|---|---|---|
2021 | Liberty | 17-8 | Clemson | [4] |
2022 | Virginia Tech | 18-11 | Clemson | [5] |
2023 | Virginia Tech | 14-132OT | Liberty | [6] |
2024 | Liberty | 17-13 | Tennessee | [7] |
Note: Italic text denotes MCLA National Champion runner-up
Season | Champion | Score | Runner-up | Link |
---|---|---|---|---|
2022 | UNC Charlotte | 16-8 | Coastal Carolina | [8] |
2023 | UNC Charlotte | 11-9 | Coastal Carolina | [9] |
2024 | UNC Charlotte | 14-9 | Wake Forest | [10] |
The Southern Conference (SoCon) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I. Southern Conference football teams compete in the Football Championship Subdivision. Member institutions are located in the states of Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia.
The Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN) is a collegiate athletic conference operating mostly in the Southeastern United States. The league participates at the NCAA Division I level, and began sponsoring football at the Division I FCS level in 2022. Originally established as the Trans America Athletic Conference (TAAC) in 1978, it was renamed as the Atlantic Sun Conference in 2001, and briefly rebranded as the ASUN Conference from 2016 to 2023. The conference still uses "ASUN" as an official abbreviation. The conference headquarters are located in Atlanta.
The South Carolina Gamecocks represent the University of South Carolina in the NCAA Division I.
The Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association (MCLA) is a national organization of non-NCAA men's college lacrosse programs. The MCLA oversees game play and conducts national championships for over 200 teams in ten conferences throughout the United States and Canada. The MCLA provides a governing structure much like the NCAA, with eligibility rules, All-Americans and a national tournament to decide national champions in both Divisions I and II.
The Missouri State Bears and Lady Bears are the athletic teams representing Missouri State University. Missouri State's athletics programs date back to 1908. Missouri State competes in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision. The majority of sports play in the Division I Missouri Valley Conference. Missouri State football competes in the Missouri Valley Football Conference, while men's swimming & diving competes in the Mid-American Conference, and the women's beach volleyball team, nicknamed Beach Bears instead of "Bears" or "Lady Bears", competes in Conference USA, having moved from the Coastal Collegiate Sports Association after the spring 2023 season. Missouri State athletics are frequently abbreviated as "MOST" when televised.
College lacrosse is played by student-athletes at colleges and universities in the United States and Canada. In both countries, men's field lacrosse and women's lacrosse are played at both the varsity and club levels. College lacrosse in Canada is sponsored by the Canadian University Field Lacrosse Association (CUFLA) and Maritime University Field Lacrosse League (MUFLL), while in the United States, varsity men's and women's lacrosse is governed by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) and National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). There are also university lacrosse programs in the United Kingdom sponsored by British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS) and programs in Japan.
The Grand Valley State Lakers are the intercollegiate athletic teams of Grand Valley State University, located in Allendale, Michigan, United States. The GVSU Lakers compete at the NCAA Division II level and are members of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC).
The Western Collegiate Lacrosse League (WCLL) is a conference that participates in the Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association (MCLA). The WCLL operates in California, Nevada, and Oregon and is split into two divisions, Division I and Division II. The conference is governed by an executive board and the teams that win the conference's divisional playoffs receive automatic bids to the MCLA National Tournament.
The Upper Midwest Lacrosse Conference (UMLC) is a men's college club lacrosse conference in the Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association (MCLA). The UMLC includes teams in the midwest in two divisions - nine teams in Division I and six teams in Division II.
The Florida Gators women's lacrosse team represents the University of Florida in the sport of college lacrosse. The Gators compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) and are single-sport members of the American Athletic Conference, which they joined in 2018 after four seasons in the Big East Conference. After the 2024 season, the Gators will leave The American to join the new women's lacrosse league of the Big 12 Conference. Before joining Big East women's lacrosse, the Gators were members of the American Lacrosse Conference (ALC), which folded after the 2014 season due to aftereffects of conference realignment. They play their home games in Donald R. Dizney Stadium on the university's Gainesville, Florida campus, and are currently led by head coach Amanda O'Leary. The Gators have won regular-season conference titles in 11 of the 13 completed seasons of the women's lacrosse program's existence, with four each in the ALC and Big East plus three in The American. Additionally, they have won 10 conference tournament titles and advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA tournament six times, with their best NCAA finish being a semifinal berth in 2012.
The North Carolina Tar Heels men's lacrosse team represents the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I men's lacrosse. North Carolina currently competes as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and plays its home games at Fetzer Field and Kenan Memorial Stadium in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Their main rivalry series is with fellow ACC member Duke.
The Great Rivers Lacrosse Conference (GRLC) was a conference in the Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association (MCLA). The GRLC incorporated teams in Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, and Ohio and was divided into two divisions, Division I and Division II.
The Rocky Mountain Lacrosse Conference (RMLC) is one of ten conferences in the Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association. Currently the RMLC consists of 15 teams encompassing four Rocky Mountain states; Colorado, Utah, Montana, and Wyoming. It is divided into two divisions, Division I and Division II. Division II is separated further by region; Northwest and Southeast
The NC State Wolfpack men's lacrosse team represented North Carolina State University in NCAA Division I men's lacrosse from 1973 to 1982 and currently represents the university in the Southeast Lacrosse Conference. The team was disbanded as a varsity sport after the 1982 season. The team currently competes in the Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association Division I.
The SouthEastern Lacrosse Conference (SELC) is a lacrosse-only athletic conference affiliated with the Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association (MCLA). The SELC incorporates teams in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, and is divided into two divisions, Division I and Division II. With 17 members, it is one of the largest of the MCLA's nine conferences. In 2021 several teams in the mid Atlantic region split off to create the Atlantic Lacrosse Conference.
The Davenport Panthers are the athletic teams that represent Davenport University, located in Caledonia Township, Michigan, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the NCAA Division II level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), primarily competing in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) for most of its sports as a provisional member since the 2017–18 academic year. The Panthers previously competed in the Wolverine–Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) from 2005–06 to 2016–17.
The Southwestern Lacrosse Conference (SLC) is a lacrosse-only athletic conference affiliated with the Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association (MCLA). The conference incorporates teams from California and Arizona and is divided into three divisions, Division I, Division II, and Division III.
The Michigan Wolverines men's lacrosse team is the intercollegiate men's lacrosse program representing the University of Michigan. The school competes in the Big Ten Conference in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Prior to joining the NCAA, Michigan competed as a club-varsity program at the Division I level of the Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association (MCLA) in the Central Collegiate Lacrosse Association (CCLA), where the Wolverines secured three MCLA national championships and won 11 consecutive conference titles. The team is coached by Kevin Conry.
The North Carolina Tar Heels women's lacrosse team represents the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I women's lacrosse and currently competes as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). The North Carolina women's lacrosse team won the ACC tournament in 2002 and their first Division 1 national championship in 2013.