SALT LAKE CITY -- The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has approved Westminster College to begin the three-year Division II membership process.
Westminster accepted an invitation from the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference to become the conference’s 16
th member in January 2014. Westminster now begins the transition from the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and the Frontier Conference, to the RMAC.
“Today is another historic day for the RMAC with the addition of Westminster,” RMAC Commissioner Chris Graham said. “We anticipate great competition for years to come, and we congratulate them on this new athletic endeavor.”
Westminster applied for NCAA Division II membership after accepting an invitation to join the RMAC. The membership process begins on September 1, 2015, and will take a minimum of three years to complete. The Griffins will play an RMAC schedule, with games against RMAC opponents counting as conference contests. They will not compete in conference championships which send an automatic qualifier (AQ) to the NCAA Championships, but they will compete in all other conference championships.
The NCAA Division II Membership Committee annually determines if an institution advances to the next year of the process. Following completion of the Provisional Year and final year of the process, the Griffins will attain full NCAA membership to become eligible to compete for NCAA II championships, as early as 2018–19.
“We are pleased to be approved for ‘Candidacy Year One’ in NCAA Division II and become part of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference,” said Steve Morgan, president of Westminster College. “NCAA Division II encourages excellence in its student-athletes and provides a supportive environment to move our athletic program forward in a student-focused manner. The Westminster community looks forward to participating in the RMAC and completing the transition to NCAA Division II active membership status. ”
Westminster College was previously a member of the RMAC from 1967 to 1979. The Griffins compete in a total of 14 varsity sports currently sponsored by the RMAC, including men’s and women’s basketball, men's and women's cross country and indoor/outdoor track and field, men's and women's golf, women's lacrosse, men's and women's soccer, and women's volleyball.
“This approval is due to the efforts and support of many at the college,” said Shay Wyatt, Westminster’s director of athletics. “While we still have much work ahead of us, this is an important step towards active membership within NCAA Division II and the RMAC, which will further enhance the college and the experience for our student-athletes.”
The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference is a premier NCAA Division II conference located in the states of Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico, South Dakota, and now Utah.