St. Joseph’s men’s lacrosse to play in newly formed Atlantic 10 conference beginning with 2022-23 season
St. Joe's, which won their first NEC title in 2022, will join UMass, Richmond, Saint Bonaventure, High Point and Hobart in the Atlantic 10's inaugural men's lacrosse season.
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The Atlantic 10 announced on Monday that it has formed a men’s lacrosse conference that will begin play in the 2022-23 season.
Men’s lacrosse will be the A-10′s 22nd sport, with the inaugural season to be contested by six schools. Full-time Atlantic 10 members St. Joseph’s, Richmond, St. Bonaventure and Massachusetts will be joined by affiliate-members High Point and Hobart in the conference. The NCAA requires a conference to have at least six participating schools for the league to have postseason eligibility.
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“Adding men’s lacrosse to the portfolio of Atlantic 10-sponsored sports provides a home for our four full-time members, who have requested this for several years,” said Atlantic 10 Commissioner Bernadette V. McGlade. “Welcoming both High Point and Hobart College as affiliate members rounds out a strong collection of teams that have been nationally competitive, playing in the NCAA postseason multiple times, with multiple national championship appearances.”
St. Joe’s, which has had varsity lacrosse since 1992, recently won the Northeast Conference championship and qualified for the NCAA tournament for the first time in school history. St. Joe’s women’s lacrosse program, which also qualified for the NCAA tournament this season, already competes in the Atlantic 10.
“This is an incredibly exciting time for our men’s lacrosse program,” said Jill Bodensteiner, director of athletics. “To build on the momentum created by our first NCAA tournament appearance, we are thrilled to be adding men’s lacrosse to our home conference.
“The Atlantic 10 has put together some of the best teams in the country, and we cannot wait to compete for a championship. We also want to express our heartfelt gratitude to the leadership and members of the NEC for providing a tremendous home to our Hawks over the years.”
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The Hawks, who have been coached by Taylor Wray since 2012, won a program-best 14 games this season before losing to Yale, 18-16, in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
“We are thrilled with the announcement about A-10 men’s lacrosse,” Wray said. “We are excited to be able to compete alongside the rest of the varsity sports here on Hawk Hill in the Atlantic 10 Conference. The A-10 has a national brand in college sports and I believe this is another big step forward for Division I men’s lacrosse.”