Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference

Athletic conference in north-eastern US

Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference

Association| NCAA
Founded| 1961
Commissioner| Daniel Mara (since 2006)
Sports fielded|

* 17
* men's: 8
* women's: 9

Division| Division II
No. of teams| 12
Headquarters| New Haven, Connecticut
Region| Atlantic Coast
Official website| caccathletics.org
Locations

The Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (or CACC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. Its twelve member institutions are located in the northeastern United States in the states of Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania.

The CACC was founded in 1961 as an athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), and later joined the NCAA in 2002 on provisional status. The CACC Conference Office has been located in New Haven, Connecticut since 2004, the same year that it upgraded to full active status. The CACC has three full-time staff members and one part-time.[1]

## History

[edit]

Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference

50km
31miles

Bloomfield

Lincoln

Bridgeport

Chestnut Hill

Jefferson

Wilmington

Holy Family

Goldey–Beacom

Felician

Post

Caldwell

Georgian Court

Dominican

Location of CACC members:  full,  affiliate

On August 2, 2022, the CACC announced that it added bowling, a women-only sport in the NCAA, that began in the 2023 spring season (2022–23 academic year), with full members Bloomfield, Caldwell, Chestnut Hill, Felician, Holy Family, and Wilmington as the inaugural teams. All but Holy Family, which launched its varsity team in 2022–23, had previously been affiliates of the East Coast Conference in that sport.[2]

On November 28, 2023, Lincoln University of Pennsylvania accepted an invitation to join the CACC as an associate member in baseball and women's soccer, beginning the 2024–25 academic year.[3]

### Chronological timeline

[edit]

* 1961 – The Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) was founded. Charter members included Bloomfield College (now Bloomfield College of Montclair State University), Adelphi Suffolk College (later Dowling College), The King's College, the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University, Southampton College of Long Island University, Marist College, Monmouth College of New Jersey and Nyack College (later Alliance University), beginning the 1961–62 academic year.
* 1965 – St. Thomas Aquinas College joined the CACC in the 1965–66 academic year.
* 1981 – Marist left the CACC to join the Division I ranks of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the ECAC Metro Conference (now known as the Northeast Conference) after the 1980–81 academic year.
* 1982 – Dominican College of New York (now Dominican University New York) joined the CACC in the 1982–83 academic year.
* 1983 – Georgian Court College (now Georgian Court University) joined the CACC in the 1983–84 academic year.
* 1985 – Monmouth (N.J.) left the CACC to fully align with the NCAA Division I ranks and join the ECAC Metro after the 1984–85 academic year.
* 1987 – Caldwell College (now Caldwell University) and Post College (now Post University) joined the CACC in the 1987–88 academic year.
* 1999:
* St. Thomas Aquinas left the CACC to join the NCAA Division II ranks as an NCAA D-II Independent (which would later join the New York Collegiate Athletic Conference (NYCAC, now known as the East Coast Conference) beginning the 2000–01 school year.) after the 1998–99 academic year.
* Felician College (now Felician University), Goldey–Beacom College, Holy Family College (now Holy Family University), the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia (USP; later the University of the Sciences before being absorbed by Saint Joseph's University in 2022) and Wilmington College of Delaware (now Wilmington University) joined the CACC in the 1999–2000 academic year.
* 2000 – The New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) joined the CACC in the 2000–01 academic year.
* 2002 – The CACC was granted provisional membership status within the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II ranks, transitioning from the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) in the 2002–03 academic year.
* 2004 – The CACC had achieved full membership status within the NCAA Division II ranks in the 2004–05 academic year.
* 2005 – Philadelphia University (now Thomas Jefferson University) joined the CACC in the 2005–06 academic year.
* 2006 – NJIT left the CACC to join the NCAA Division I ranks as an NCAA D-I Independent after the 2005–06 academic year.
* 2007 – Chestnut Hill College joined the CACC in the 2007–08 academic year.
* 2009 – Concordia College of New York joined the CACC in the 2009–10 academic year.
* 2017 – The CACC began sponsoring men's lacrosse, with play starting in the 2018 spring season (2017–18 academic year).
* 2021 – Concordia (NY) left the CACC as the school announced that it would close at the end of the 2020–21 academic year.
* 2022:
* USciences left the CACC when it merged into Saint Joseph's University at the end of the 2021–22 academic year.
* The University of Bridgeport joined the CACC in the 2022–23 academic year.
* The CACC began sponsoring bowling, a women-only sport in the NCAA, with play starting the 2023 spring season (2022–23 academic year), with full members Bloomfield, Caldwell, Chestnut Hill, Felician, Holy Family, and Wilmington as the inaugural teams. All but Holy Family, which launched its varsity team in 2022–23, had previously been affiliates of the East Coast Conference in that sport.
* 2023 – Alliance left the CACC as the school announced that it would close at the end of the 2022–23 academic year.
* 2024 – Lincoln University of Pennsylvania joined the CACC as an associate member for baseball and women's soccer in the 2024–25 academic year.

## Member schools

[edit]

### Current members

[edit]

The CACC currently has 12 full members, all but one (Bloomfield) are private schools:

Institution  | Location  | Founded  | Affiliation  | Enrollment  | Nickname  | Joined[a] | Colors

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

Bloomfield College (of Montclair State) | Bloomfield, New Jersey | 1868  | Public  | 1,533  | Bears | 1961  |
University of Bridgeport | Bridgeport, Connecticut | 1927  | Nonsectarian | 3,563  | Purple Knights | 2022[4] |
Caldwell University | Caldwell, New Jersey | 1939  | Catholic
(OP) | 2,029  | Cougars | 1987  |
Chestnut Hill College | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | 1924  | Catholic
(CSJ) | 1,505  | Griffins | 2007  |
Dominican University New York | Orangeburg, New York | 1952  | Catholic
(DS) | 1,407  | Chargers | 1982  |
Felician University | Rutherford, New Jersey | 1923  | Catholic
(CSSF) | 2,205  | Golden Falcons | 1999  |
Georgian Court University[b] | Lakewood, New Jersey | 1908  | Catholic
(RSM) | 1,962  | Lions | 1983  |
Goldey–Beacom College | Wilmington, Delaware | 1886  | Nonsectarian | 1,012  | Lightning | 1999  |
Holy Family University | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | 1954  | Catholic
(C.S.F.N.) | 3,011  | Tigers | 1999  |
Post University | Waterbury, Connecticut | 1890  | For-profit | 18,486  | Eagles | 1987  |
Thomas Jefferson University[c] | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | 1824  | Nonsectarian  | 8,286  | Rams | 2005  |
Wilmington University | New Castle, Delaware | 1968  | Nonsectarian  | 13,129  | Wildcats | 1999  |

Notes

1. ^ Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.
2. ^ This institution was a women's college, but has since then been a co-educational institution, therefore it does compete in some men's sports (Georgian Court since 2013–14).
3. ^ Jefferson joined the CACC as Philadelphia University. In 2017, PhilaU merged with Thomas Jefferson University, a healthcare-only institution with no athletic program, with the merged institution taking the Thomas Jefferson name. The former PhilaU athletic program has since competed as the Jefferson Rams.[5]

### Associate members

[edit]

Institution  | Location  | Founded  | Affiliation  | Enrollment  | Nickname  | Joined[a] | Colors  | CACC
sport(s)  | Primary
conference

|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|

Lincoln University | Chester County, Pennsylvania | 1854  | State-related
(HBCU) | 2,376  | Lions | 2024bsb. |     | baseball  | Central (CIAA)
2024w.soc. | women's soccer

Notes

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

### Former members

[edit]

The CACC had eleven former full members; all but one were private schools.

Institution  | Location  | Founded  | Affiliation  | Enrollment  | Nickname  | Joined[a] | Left[b] | Current
conference

|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|

Alliance University[c] | New York City, New York | 1882  | Christian
(C&MA) | 3,318  | Warriors | 1961  | 2023  | Closed in 2023
Concordia College | Bronxville, New York | 1881  | Lutheran LCMS | N/A  | Clippers | 2009  | 2021  | Closed in 2021[d]
Dowling College | Oakdale, New York | 1955  | Nonsectarian | N/A  | Golden Lions | 1961  | 1989  | Closed in 2016
The King's College | New York City, New York | 1938  | Christian
(Nondenominational) | 550  | Lions | 1961  | 1989  | Hudson Valley (HVIAC)[e]
Long Island University–Post | Brookville, New York | 1954  | Nonsectarian  | 8,472  | Pioneers | 1961  | 1989  | Northeast (NEC)[f][g]
Marist College | Poughkeepsie, New York | 1929  | Nonsectarian[h] | 6,624  | Red Foxes | 1961  | 1981  | Metro Atlantic (MAAC)[f]
Monmouth University | West Long Branch, New Jersey | 1933  | Nonsectarian  | 6,167  | Hawks | 1961  | 1985  | Coastal (CAA)[f]
New Jersey Institute of Technology | Newark, New Jersey | 1968  | Public  | 11,652  | Highlanders | 2000  | 2006  | America East (AmEast)[f]
St. Thomas Aquinas College | Sparkill, New York | 1952  | Catholic
(D.S.S.) | 2,400  | Spartans | 1965  | 1999  | East Coast (ECC)
University of the Sciences | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | 1821  | Nonsectarian  | 2,749  | Devils | 1998  | 2022  | Closed in 2022[i]
Southampton College of Long Island University | Southampton, New York | 1963  | Nonsectarian  | N/A  | Colonials | 1961  | 1989  | Closed in 2005[j]

Notes

1. ^ Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.
2. ^ Represents the calendar year when spring sports competition ends.
3. ^ Formerly known as Nyack College until 2022.
4. ^ Concordia (N.Y.)'s campus was later sold to nearby Iona College (now Iona University).[6]
5. ^ Currently an USCAA athletic conference.
6. ^ a b c d Currently an NCAA Division I athletic conference.
7. ^ Long Island University merged the Post athletic program with the NCAA Division I program of its Brooklyn campus in 2019. The merged program inherited the Division I membership of the Brooklyn campus, and now competes in the Northeast Conference as the LIU Sharks.
8. ^ Marist was a Catholic institution operated by the Marist Brothers when it joined the CACC. In 1969, control of the college was transferred from the order to a separate organization primarily staffed by laypeople. Marist is now officially nonsectarian, but it was not treated as such by the Catholic Church until 2003, long after leaving the CACC.
9. ^ USciences merged with Division I Saint Joseph's University and discontinued athletics following the 2021–22 school year.
10. ^ LIU Southampton's campus was later sold to Stony Brook University in 2006.[7]

### Membership timeline

[edit]

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

## Sports

[edit]

See also: CACC men's basketball tournament and CACC women's basketball tournament

A divisional format is used for baseball, men's & women's basketball, and volleyball. In baseball, Georgian Court is placed in the North Division.

North

* Bloomfield
* Bridgeport
* Caldwell
* Dominican
* Felician
* Post

South

* Chestnut Hill
* Georgian Court
* Goldey–Beacom
* Holy Family
* Jefferson
* Wilmington

Conference sports Sport | Men's | Women's

|
|

Baseball | Y |
Basketball | Y | Y
Bowling |  | Y
Cross Country | Y | Y
Golf | Y |
Lacrosse | Y | Y
Soccer | Y | Y
Softball |  | Y
Tennis | Y | Y
Track & Field Outdoor | Y | Y
Volleyball |  | Y

### Men's sponsored sports by school

[edit]

School  | Baseball  | Basketball  | Cross
country  | Golf  | Lacrosse  | Soccer  | Tennis  | Track
& field
outdoor  | Total
CACC
sports

|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|

Bloomfield  | Y | Y | Y |  |  | Y | Y | Y | 6
Bridgeport  | Y | Y | Y |  | Y | Y |  |  | 5
Caldwell  | Y | Y | Y |  | Y | Y |  | Y | 6
Chestnut Hill  | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | 8
Dominican  | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |  | Y | 7
Felician  | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |  |  | 6
Georgian Court  | Y | Y | Y |  | Y | Y |  | Y | 6
Goldey–Beacom  | Y | Y | Y | Y |  | Y |  | Y | 6
Holy Family  | Y | Y | Y |  | Y | Y |  | Y | 6
Jefferson  | Y | Y | Y | Y |  | Y | Y | Y | 7
Post  | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | 8
Wilmington  | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |  | Y | 7
Totals  | 12+1[a] | 12  | 12  | 7  | 9  | 12  | 4  | 10  | 76+1

1. ^ Affiliate member Lincoln.

### Women's sponsored sports by school

[edit]

School  | Basketball  | Bowling[a] | Cross
country  | Lacrosse  | Soccer  | Softball  | Tennis  | Track
& field
outdoor  | Volleyball  | Total
CACC
sports

|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|

Bloomfield  | Y | Y | Y |  | Y | Y |  | Y | Y | 7
Bridgeport  | Y |  | Y | Y | Y | Y |  |  | Y | 6
Caldwell  | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | 9
Chestnut Hill  | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | 9
Dominican  | Y |  | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | 8
Felician  | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |  | Y | Y | 8
Georgian Court  | Y |  | Y | Y | Y | Y |  | Y | Y | 7
Goldey–Beacom  | Y |  | Y |  | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | 7
Holy Family  | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |  | Y | Y | 8
Jefferson  | Y |  | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | 8
Post  | Y |  | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | 8
Wilmington  | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | 9
Totals  | 12  | 6  | 12  | 10  | 12+1[b] | 12  | 7  | 11  | 12  | 94+1

1. ^ De facto Division I sport. The NCAA operates a single championship in bowling open to members of all three divisions.
2. ^ Affiliate member Lincoln.

### Other sponsored sports by school

[edit]

School  |  | Men  |  | Women

|
|
|
|

Football  | Ice
hockey  | Swimming
& diving  | Track
& field
indoor  | Volleyball [a] | Wrestling  | Golf  | Ice
hockey[a] | Rowing  | Swimming
& diving  | Track
& field
indoor
Bridgeport  |  |  | NE-10[b] |  |  |  |  |  |  | NE-10[b] |
Dominican  |  |  |  |  | ECC |  |  |  |  |  |
Felician  |  |  | NE-10[b] |  |  | IND |  |  |  | NE-10[b] |
Georgian Court  |  |  |  | ECC |  |  |  |  |  |  | ECC
Holy Family  |  |  |  | ECC |  |  |  |  |  |  | ECC
Jefferson  |  |  |  |  |  |  | IND |  | IND |  |
Post  | NE-10 | NE-10 |  | ECC |  |  | IND | NEWHA |  |  | ECC

1. ^ a b De facto Division I sport. The NCAA conducts combined national championships open to Division I and Division II members in both women's ice hockey and men's volleyball.
2. ^ a b c d Beginning in the 2025-26 academic year.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "About the CACC". Retrieved August 27, 2012.
2. ^ "CACC to Sponsor Women's Bowling Beginning this Season" (Press release). Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference. August 2, 2022. Retrieved November 10, 2022.
3. ^ "Lincoln Lions Join CACC in Women's Soccer and Baseball" (Press release). Lincoln University Athletics. November 28, 2023. Retrieved February 11, 2024.
4. ^ "University Of Bridgeport Unanimously Accepted Into The Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference". UB Purple Knights. December 15, 2021. Retrieved December 26, 2021.
5. ^ "New merged Jefferson U. will field sports teams". Philadelphia Inquirer. June 29, 2017. Retrieved June 29, 2017.
6. ^ Whitford, Emma (January 29, 2021). "Another Concordia College Closes". Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
7. ^ "Stony Brook University Completes Purchase of Former Southampton College Property". Stony Brook University. 4 October 2006. Archived from the original on 2011-07-21. Retrieved 2007-07-01.

## External links

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference.

* Official website

* v
* t
* e

Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference

Members|

* Bloomfield Bears
* Bridgeport Purple Knights
* Caldwell Cougars
* Chestnut Hill College Griffins
* Dominican Chargers
* Felician Golden Falcons
* Georgian Court Lions
* Goldey–Beacom Lightning
* Holy Family Tigers
* Jefferson Rams
* Post Eagles
* Wilmington Wildcats

* v
* t
* e

NCAA Division II all-sports conferences

Atlantic|

* Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association
* Mountain East Conference
* Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference

* Independent — Salem University

Central|

* Great American Conference
* Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association
* Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference

East|

* Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference
* East Coast Conference
* Northeast-10 Conference

Midwest|

* Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
* Great Lakes Valley Conference
* Great Midwest Athletic Conference

South|

* Gulf South Conference
* Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
* Sunshine State Conference

South Central|

* Lone Star Conference
* Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference

Southeast|

* Conference Carolinas
* Peach Belt Conference
* South Atlantic Conference

West|

* California Collegiate Athletic Association
* Great Northwest Athletic Conference
* Pacific West Conference

Division II|

* Independents

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