INDIANAPOLIS-The NCAA Division III Men's Lacrosse Committee has selected the teams that will compete in the 2004 NCAA Division III Men's Lacrosse Championship.
The championship provides for a 17-team tournament. Automatic qualification (AQ) is granted to 13 conference champions, which form "Pool A." Two teams are selected from true independents and schools from conferences that do not have an automatic bid for their champions (Pool B). The remaining two teams are selected from those teams in conferences with automatic bids that did not win their conference's AQ and the remaining Pool B institutions (Pool C). The teams are geographically paired, whenever possible.
Except for the championship game, all games will be played on the campus of one of the competing teams. Defending champion Salisbury ended the three-year win streak of Middlebury last year with a 14-13 sudden-victory overtime win in the title game at Baltimore's M&T Bank Stadium.
The champions of the following conferences received automatic qualification (AQ):
NORTH REGION - Automatic Qualifiers Commonwealth Coast Conference Endicott Empire 8 Nazareth Knickerbocker Lacrosse Conference Stevens Institute of Technology Little East Conference Eastern Connecticut New England Small College Athletic Conference Middlebury Pilgrim Lacrosse League Springfield Upstate Collegiate Athletic Association Clarkson State University of New York Athletic Conference Geneseo State SOUTH REGION - Automatic Qualifiers Capital Athletic Conference Salisbury Centennial Conference Gettysburg Middle Atlantic Conference Messiah Pennsylvania Athletic Conference Cabrini Old Dominion Athletic Conference Washington and Lee POOL "B" SELECTIONS Whittier Wooster POOL "C" SELECTIONS Washington (Maryland) Cortland State
This year's finalists will again advance to Baltimore's M&T Bank Stadium for the championship game, which will be played at noon, May 30, and televised live by CSTV. That game will be followed by the Division II championship at 3 p.m., also at M&T Bank Stadium and live on CSTV. The Division I semifinals and championship are May 29 and 31 at the same site.
For ticket information for all games in Baltimore, call 410/261-7283.
For more information about the NCAA Division III Men's Lacrosse Championship, log on towww.ncaasports.com.
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