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
ConferenceNCAA
Founded1971
Ceased2016
CommissionerRudy Keeling
Sports fielded
DivisionDivision III
No. of teams9 (final season)
HeadquartersCenterville, Massachusetts
RegionMassachusetts and Rhode Island
Locations
Location of teams in {{{title}}}

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

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

[2] 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 Independent
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. "Commonwealth Coast Conference to Add Men's Ice Hockey in 2016-2017". 2 October 2015.
  2. "NCAA - ECAC Northeast history and statistics". Hockey DB. Retrieved November 24, 2018.
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