North Coast Athletic Conference

North Coast Athletic Conference

Association	NCAA
Founded	1983
Commissioner	Keri Alexander Luchowski
Sports fielded	23 men's: 11 women's: 12
Division	Division III
No. of teams	9
Headquarters	Cleveland, Ohio
Region	Great Lakes
Official website	northcoast.org
Locations

North Coast Athletic Conference

110km
68miles

Wooster

Wittenberg

Wabash

Ohio Wesleyan

Oberlin

Kenyon

DePauw

Denison

John Carroll

   

Location of NCAC members: full members

The North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) is an intercollegiate athletic conference that competes in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III which is composed of colleges located in Ohio and Indiana. It sponsors 23 sports, 11 for men and 12 for women.

History

The formation of the NCAC was announced at joint news conferences in Cleveland, Columbus and Pittsburgh in February 1983. Allegheny College, Case Western Reserve University (CWRU), Denison University, Kenyon College, Oberlin College, Ohio Wesleyan University, and The College of Wooster were charter members in 1984, the same year that NCAC athletic conference play began. The conference offered 10 women's sports, the most offered by a conference at that time.

In 1988, Earlham College and Wittenberg College accepted invitations to join the NCAC, pushing conference membership to nine schools in three states. The two schools would begin play in the fall of 1989. In 1998, Hiram College, and Wabash College accepted invitations to join the NCAC, pushing conference membership to 10 schools in three states, which both schools began play in the fall of 1999. Case Western Reserve, a charter member of the NCAC, announced that it would leave the NCAC following the 1998–99 academic year. The Spartans would compete on a full-time basis in the University Athletic Association (UAA) after more than a decade of joint conference membership affiliation.

Earlham announced it would depart the NCAC for the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC), beginning with the 2010–11 season. DePauw University became the 10th member of the NCAC beginning in the 2011–12 season.

Allegheny left the NCAC after the 2021–22 school year to return to its former home of the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC). Allegheny and Earlham remain single-sport NCAC members in field hockey. ^[1] Later in 2022, Transylvania University and Washington & Jefferson College were announced as single-sport NCAC members for field hockey, beginning with the 2023 season.

The most recent changes to the NCAC membership were announced in 2024. First, on January 18, John Carroll University announced it was leaving the Ohio Athletic Conference to join the NCAC. ^[2] Then on April 23, Hiram announced it would leave the NCAC in 2025 to return to the PAC, which it had left in 1989. ^[3]

Chronological timeline

• 1983 – In February 1983, the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) was founded. Charter members included Allegheny College, Case Western Reserve University (CWRU), Denison University, Kenyon College, Oberlin College, Ohio Wesleyan University and The College of Wooster, beginning the 1984–85 academic year.
• 1988 – Earlham College and Wittenberg College joined the NCAC in the 1989–90 academic year.
• 1999:
  • Case Western Reserve left the NCAC to fully align all of its sports to the University Athletic Association (UAA) after the 1998–99 academic year.
  • Hiram College and Wabash College joined the NCAC in the 1999–2000 academic year.
• 2010 – Earlham left the NCAC to join the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) after the 2009–10 academic year; while it remained in the conference as an affiliate member for field hockey, beginning the 2010–11 school year.
• 2011 – DePauw University joined the NCAC in the 2011–12 academic year.
• 2022 – Allegheny left the NCAC to rejoin the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) after the 2021–22 academic year; while it remained in the conference as an affiliate member for field hockey, beginning the 2022–23 school year.
• 2023 – Transylvania University and Washington & Jefferson College joined the NCAC as affiliate members for field hockey in the 2023 fall season (2023–24 academic year).
• 2025:
  • Hiram left the NCAC to rejoin the PAC after the 2024–25 academic year.
  • John Carroll University joined the NCAC beginning the 2025–26 academic year.
• 2026 – Washington University in St. Louis will join the NCAC as an affiliate member for football, beginning the 2026 fall season (2026–27 academic year).

Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives

In 2019, the NCAC was one of the first NCAA conferences to participate in the organization's LGBTQ OneTeam Program, which launched in fall 2019. Two facilitators from the NCAC – Seth Hayes of Denison University and Rhea Debussy of Kenyon College – were among the first 30 facilitators for this NCAA Division III program. ^[4] In 2021, the NCAA announced that two NCAC staff members – Kate Costanzo of Allegheny College and Rhea Debussy of Kenyon College – were finalists for the NCAA Division III LGBTQ Administrator/Coach/Staff of the Year Award. ^[5]

Member schools

Current members

The NCAC currently has nine full members, all private schools.

Institution	Location	Founded	Affiliation	Enrollment	2022 US News ranking [6]	2021 Forbes Top Colleges [7]	Nickname	Joined [a]	Colors
Denison University	Granville, Ohio	1831	Nonsectarian	2,100	42	288	Big Red	1984
DePauw University	Greencastle, Indiana	1837	Methodist	2,350	46	130	Tigers	2011
John Carroll University	University Heights, Ohio	1886	Catholic (Jesuit)	2,615			Blue Streaks	2025
Kenyon College	Gambier, Ohio	1824	Episcopal/Anglican	1,640	30	287	Owls [8]	1984
Oberlin College	Oberlin, Ohio	1833	Nonsectarian	2,850	37	290	Yeomen & Yeowomen	1984
Ohio Wesleyan University	Delaware, Ohio	1842	Nonsectarian [b]	1,850	98	446	Battling Bishops	1984
Wabash College [c]	Crawfordsville, Indiana	1832	Nonsectarian	850	57	327	Little Giants	1999
Wittenberg University	Springfield, Ohio	1845	Lutheran ELCA	2,050	155	435	Tigers	1989
The College of Wooster	Wooster, Ohio	1866	Nonsectarian	1,827	71	428	Fighting Scots	1984

Notes

1. Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.
2. Formerly affiliated with the United Methodist Church until 2019.
3. This institution is a men's college, therefore it does not compete in women's teams.

Affiliate members

The NCAC has four affiliate members, all are private schools.

Institution	Location	Founded	Affiliation	Enrollment	Nickname	Joined [a]	NCAC sport(s)	Primary conference
Allegheny College [b]	Meadville, Pennsylvania	1815	United Methodist	1,442	Gators	2022	Field hockey	Presidents' (PAC)
Earlham College [c]	Richmond, Indiana	1847	Quaker	900	Quakers	2010	Field hockey	Heartland (HCAC)
Transylvania University	Lexington, Kentucky	1780	Disciples of Christ	963	Pioneers	2023	Field hockey	Heartland (HCAC)
Washington & Jefferson College	Washington, Pennsylvania	1781	Nonsectarian	1,168	Presidents	2023 [9]	Field hockey	Presidents' (PAC)

Notes

1. Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.
2. Allegheny was a full member of the NCAC from 1984–85 to 2021–22.
3. Earlham was a full member of the NCAC from 1989–90 to 2009–10.

Future affiliate member

The NCAC will have one future affiliate member, a private school.

Institution	Location	Founded	Affiliation	Enrollment	Nickname	Joined [a]	NCAC sport(s)	Primary conference
Washington University in St. Louis	St. Louis, Missouri	1853	Nonsectarian	14,117	Bears	2026	Football [10]	University (UAA)

Notes

1. Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.

Former members

The NCAC has three former full members, all private schools.

Institution	Location	Founded	Affiliation	Enrollment	Nickname	Joined [a]	Left [b]	Current conference
Allegheny College [c]	Meadville, Pennsylvania	1815	United Methodist	2,100	Gators	1984	2022	Presidents' (PAC)
Case Western Reserve University [d]	Cleveland, Ohio	1826	Nonsectarian	11,824	Spartans	1984	1999	University (UAA)
Earlham College [e]	Richmond, Indiana	1847	Quakers	1,181	Quakers	1989	2010	Heartland (HCAC)
Hiram College	Hiram, Ohio	1850	Disciples of Christ	1,395	Terriers	1999	2025	Presidents' (PAC)

Notes

1. Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.
2. Represents the calendar year when spring sports competition ends.
3. Allegheny remains in the NCAC as an affiliate member in field hockey.
4. Case Western Reserve had dual athletic conference membership with the University Athletic Association from 1986–87 to 1998–99, then the Spartans left the NCAC in order to fully align with the UAA.
5. Earlham remains in the NCAC as an affiliate member in field hockey.

Membership timeline

 Full member (all sports)  Full member (non-football)  Associate member (football)  Associate member (sport) 

Sports

Conference Sports

Sport	Men's	Women's
Baseball	Y
Basketball	Y	Y
Cross Country	Y	Y
Field Hockey		Y
Football	Y
Golf	Y	Y
Lacrosse	Y	Y
Soccer	Y	Y
Softball		Y
Swimming & Diving	Y	Y
Tennis	Y	Y
Track & Field (Indoor)	Y	Y
Track & Field (Outdoor)	Y	Y
Volleyball		Y

Men's Sports

School	Baseball	Basketball	Cross Country	Football	Golf	Lacrosse	Soccer	Swimming & Diving	Tennis	Track & Field (Indoor)	Track & Field (Outdoor)	Total NCAC Sports
Denison	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	11
DePauw	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	11
John Carroll	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	11
Kenyon	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	11
Oberlin	Y	Y	Y	Y	N	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	10
Ohio Wesleyan	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	11
Wabash	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	11
Wittenberg	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	11
Wooster	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	11
Totals	9	9	9	9	8	9	9	9	9	9	9	98

Men's varsity sports not sponsored by the NCAC

School	Squash	Volleyball	Wrestling
Denison	LL
John Carroll			IND
Ohio Wesleyan			IND
Wabash		MCVL	IND
Wittenberg		MCVL

Women's Sports

School	Basketball	Cross Country	Field Hockey	Golf	Lacrosse	Soccer	Softball	Swimming & Diving	Tennis	Track & Field (Indoor)	Track & Field (Outdoor)	Volleyball	Total NCAC Sports
Denison	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	12
DePauw	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	12
John Carroll	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	12
Kenyon	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	12
Oberlin	Y	Y	Y	N	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	11
Ohio Wesleyan	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	12
Wittenberg	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	12
Wooster	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	12
Totals	8	8	8+4	7	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	95+4
Affiliate Members
Allegheny			Y										1
Earlham			Y										1
Transylvania			Y										1
Washington & Jefferson			Y										1

Women's varsity sports not sponsored by the NCAC

School	Bowling	Fencing	Squash	Wrestling
Denison		CCFC	LL
John Carroll				AMCC
Wittenberg	OBC

See also

• Five Colleges of Ohio
• NCAC men's basketball tournament

References

1. "Allegheny College Announces Return to the Presidents' Athletic Conference Beginning July 1, 2022" (Press release). Allegheny Gators. August 23, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
2. "John Carroll University Joins North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC)" (Press release). January 18, 2024. Retrieved January 18, 2024.
3. "Hiram College to Return to PAC" (Press release). Presidents' Athletic Conference. April 23, 2024. Retrieved April 23, 2024.
4. Smola, Jennifer (2019-11-19). "Denison, Kenyon training other colleges to better support LGBTQ athletes as part of NCAA program". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved 2023-07-13.
5. @NCAC (January 14, 2021). "NCAA LGBTQ Award 2021" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
6. "National Liberal Arts Colleges Rankings". U.S. News & World Report . Retrieved 16 January 2022.
7. "Forbes America's Top Colleges List 2021". Forbes . Retrieved 16 January 2022.
8. "Introducing the Kenyon Owls".
9. "W&J Field Hockey joins North Coast as affiliate member, set to begin NCAC play in 2023". Washington & Jefferson College Athletics. 2022-11-15. Retrieved 2023-10-12.
10. Eisner, Matt (October 18, 2024). "Football to join North Coast Athletic Conference for 2026 season". Student Life . Retrieved October 18, 2024.

External links

• Official website