ECAC Northeast

The ECAC Northeast was an intercollegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division III as a hockey-only conference. For many years it was one of the three men's hockey conferences that operated under the umbrella of the Eastern College Athletic Conference; the others were the ECAC East (now the New England Hockey Conference), and the ECAC West (soon to be the United Collegiate Hockey Conference). Member institutions were located in the New England region of the United States, in the states of Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

Eastern College Athletic Conference - Northeast
ECAC Northeast
Established1971
Dissolved2016
AssociationNCAA
DivisionDivision III
Members9 (final season)
Sports fielded
RegionMassachusetts and Rhode Island
HeadquartersCenterville, Massachusetts
CommissionerRudy Keeling
Locations

Unlike the ECAC East and ECAC West, there was no women's division of the ECAC Northeast. Most ECAC Northeast schools did not sponsor women's ice hockey; the two that did (Nichols & Salve Regina) played in the ECAC East.

The ECAC Northeast dissolved in 2016 when The Commonwealth Coast Conference, a Division III all-sports conference and the primary conference of most ECAC Northeast members, decided to sponsor men's ice hockey as a varsity sport.[1] Becker, Johnson and Wales, and Suffolk joined the CCC as associate members for ice hockey, while CCC member University of New England moved their men's team from the ECAC East to play in the CCC league.[1]

History

The foundation of the ECAC Northeast was laid in 1971 when ECAC 2, the college division of the ECAC created a third conference called ECAC 3. When the NCAA created Division III in 1973 ECAC 3 was placed at that level and remained there for the rest of its existence. In 1985, as a result of the NCAA beginning a Division III Tournament, ECAC 2 was reorganized into two separate conferences, ECAC East and ECAC West, with each becoming D-III leagues. To prevent confusion, ECAC 3 was renamed as ECAC North/South with all members split into North and South divisions (similar to how ECAC 2 had been divided into East and West divisions). This arrangement continued until 1992 when ECAC North/South was rearranged into three divisions (North, South and Central) and renamed ECAC North/South/Central. Over the course of the 1997–98 season the South Division lost 6 of its 8 teams, mostly to Division I, but rather than return to a two-division arrangement the league rebranded as ECAC Northeast. A year later the four member schools who were from Division II schools began playing in a separate tournament which allowed the other programs to play in an NCAA-sanctioned D-III conference tournament for the first time. As a result, ECAC Northeast got its first automatic bid to the tournament in 2000. In 2009 the nine schools whose primary conference was either MASCAC or Northeast-10 left when those two leagues began sponsoring ice hockey. The remaining teams stayed on for another seven years but in 2016 the Commonwealth Coast Conference, the primary conference for seven of the nine member teams, began sponsoring ice hockey. All nine teams joined CCC as either full or associate members and the ECAC Northeast was dissolved.

ECAC Northeast Tournament

Upon its founding, ECAC 3 instituted a tournament. Originally only a single game the championship slowly expanded along with the league.

Main article: ECAC Northeast Tournament

Members[2]

There were nine member schools as of the conference's final season in 2015–16.

Location Athletic nickname Colors Founded Joined Left Current Conference†
Amherst College Amherst, Massachusetts Lord Jeffs[a 1]           1821 1972 1992 NESCAC
Assumption College Worcester, Massachusetts Greyhounds           1904 1973 2009 Northeast–10
Becker College Worcester, Massachusetts Hawks 1784 2006 2016 CCC
Bentley University Waltham, Massachusetts Falcons           1917 1977 1998 Atlantic Hockey
Bryant College Smithfield, Rhode Island Bulldogs           1863 1973 1975 Dropped Program
Canisius College Buffalo, New York Golden Griffins           1870 1980 1982 Atlantic Hockey
Clark University Worcester, Massachusetts Cougars           1887 1978 1981 Dropped Program
Connecticut College New London, Connecticut Camels           1794 1980 1991 NESCAC
Curry College Milton, Massachusetts Colonels           1879 1983 2016 CCC
Endicott College Beverly, Massachusetts Gulls           1939 2015 2016 CCC
Fairfield University Fairfield, Connecticut Stags      1942 1974 1998 Dropped Program
Fitchburg State University Fitchburg, Massachusetts Falcons           1894 1975 2009 MASCAC
Framingham State University Framingham, Massachusetts Rams           1839 1972 2009[a 2] MASCAC
Franklin Pierce University[a 3] Rindge, New Hampshire Ravens           1962 2002 2009 Northeast–10
Gordon College Wenham, Massachusetts Fighting Scots           1889 1974 1981 Dropped Program
Hawthorne College Antrim, New Hampshire Hilanders     1962 1984 1988 College Closed
Hobart College Geneva, New York Statesmen           1822 1978 1983 NEHC
Iona College New Rochelle, New York Gaels           1940 1977 1998 Dropped Program
Johnson & Wales University Providence, Rhode Island Wildcats           1914 1997 2016 NEHC
Keene State College Keene, New Hampshire Owls           1909 1983 1986 Dropped Program
Lebanon Valley College Annville, Pennsylvania Flying Dutchmen           1866 1998 2004 UCHC
Lehigh University Bethlehem, Pennsylvania Mountain Hawks           1865 1971 1986 Dropped Program
University of Massachusetts Boston Dorchester, Massachusetts Beacons           1964 1980 1982 NEHC
University of Massachusetts Dartmouth[a 4] Dartmouth, Massachusetts Corsairs           1895 1974 2009 MASCAC
Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, Massachusetts Engineers           1861 1971 1975 Dropped Program
Massachusetts Maritime Academy Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts Buccaneers 1891 1975 1978 Dropped Program
Nasson College Springvale, Maine Lions     1914 1972 1974 College Closed
City College of New York New York, New York Beavers           1847 1976 1977 Dropped Program
Nichols College Dudley, Massachusetts Bison           1914 1971 2016 CCC
North Adams State College North Adams, Massachusetts Mowhawks           1894 1971 1975 Dropped Program
Plymouth State University Plymouth, New Hampshire Panthers           1871 1973 2009 MASCAC
Queens College New York, New York Knights 1847 1976 1980 Dropped Program
Quinnipiac University Hamden, Connecticut Braves           1929 1976 1998 ECAC Hockey
Ramapo College Mahwah, New Jersey Roadrunners           1969 1976 1981 Dropped Program
Rochester Institute of Technology Henrietta, New York Tigers                1829 1972 1980 Atlantic Hockey
Roger Williams University Bristol, Rhode Island Hawks                1956 1983 1998 Dropped Program
Sacred Heart University Fairfield, Connecticut Pioneers           1963 1993 1998 Atlantic Hockey
Saint Michael's College Colchester, Vermont Purple Knights           1904 1982 2001 Northeast–10
Salve Regina University Newport, Rhode Island Seahawks           1934 1997 2016 CCC
University of Scranton Scranton, Pennsylvania Royals           1888 1985 1991 Dropped Program
Skidmore College Saratoga Springs, New York Thoroughbreds                1903 1983 1998 NEHC
University of Southern Maine Gorham, Maine Huskies                1878 1972 1995[a 5] NEHC
Southern New Hampshire University[a 6] Manchester, New Hampshire Penmen           1932 1977 2009 Northeast–10
St. John's University New York, New York Red Storm           1870 1980 1992 Dropped Program
Stonehill College Easton, Massachusetts Skyhawks           1948 1978 2009 Northeast–10
Suffolk University Boston, Massachusetts Rams           1934 1980 2016 NEHC
Trinity College Hartford, Connecticut Bantams           1823 1974 1991 NESCAC
Tufts University Medford, Massachusetts Jumbos           1852 1986 2001 NESCAC
Upsala College East Orange, New Jersey Vikings     1893 1979 1988 College Closed
Villanova University Radnor Township, Pennsylvania Wildcats           1842 1982 1998 Dropped Program
Wentworth Institute of Technology Boston, Massachusetts Leopards                1904 1992 2016 CCC
Wesleyan University Middletown, Connecticut Cardinals           1831 1971 1995 NESCAC
Western New England University Springfield, Massachusetts Golden Bears           1919 1980 2016 CCC
Westfield State University Westfield, Massachusetts Owls                1874 1974 1978[a 7] MASCAC
Worcester State University Worcester, Massachusetts Lancers           1874 1971 2009 MASCAC

† as of 2018

  1. Amherst's original, unofficial nickname for its teams, the Lord Jeffs, was retired in 2016 due to controversy over the propriety of honoring Lord Jeffrey Amherst.
  2. Framingham State played in ECAC 2 from 1979 thru 1982.
  3. Franklin Pierce was known as 'Franklin Pierce College' until 2007.
  4. Massachusetts Dartmouth was known as Southeastern Massachusetts University until 1991.
  5. Southern Maine Suspended its program from 1975 thru 1985 and changed its name from University of Maine at Portland-Gorham in the interim.
  6. Southern New Hampshire was known as New Hampshire College until 2001.
  7. Westfield State returned to ECAC Northeast for 1 season in 2008–09.

* Assumption, Franklin Pierce, Southern New Hampshire, and Stonehill are Division II schools; and were not allowed to participate in the ECAC Northeast playoffs after 1999, nor were they eligible for the Division III national tournament.

Membership timeline
Endicott CollegeBecker CollegeFranklin Pierce UniversityLebanon Valley CollegeSalve Regina UniversityJohnson %26 Wales UniversitySacred Heart UniversityWentworth Institute of TechnologyTufts UniversityUniversity of ScrantonHawthorne CollegeCurry CollegeVillanova UniversitySkidmore CollegeRoger Williams UniversityKeene State CollegeSaint Michael's CollegeWestern New England UniversitySuffolk UniversitySt. John's University (New York City)Connecticut CollegeUniversity of Massachusetts BostonCanisius CollegeUpsala CollegeStonehill CollegeHobart and William Smith CollegesClark UniversitySouthern New Hampshire UniversitySouthern New Hampshire UniversityIona CollegeBentley UniversityQuinnipiac UniversityRamapo CollegeQueens College, City University of New YorkCity College of New YorkFitchburg State UniversityMassachusetts Maritime AcademyUniversity of Massachusetts DartmouthUniversity of Massachusetts DartmouthFairfield UniversityTrinity College (Connecticut)Gordon CollegeWestfield State UniversityPlymouth State UniversityBryant CollegeAmherst CollegeRochester Institute of TechnologyFramingham State UniversityUniversity of Southern MaineUniversity of Southern MaineNasson CollegeNichols CollegeWorcester State UniversityAssumption CollegeWesleyan UniversityLehigh UniversityMassachusetts College of Liberal ArtsMassachusetts Institute of Technology

References
  1. http://cccathletics.com/sports/general/2015-16/Releases/CCCHockey
  2. "NCAA - ECAC Northeast history and statistics". Hockey DB. Retrieved November 24, 2018.
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