The NCAA News - News and Features

February 24, 1997

Regional alignment, bracket sizes highlight soccer meetings

Women focus on championship expansion in II, III

The three division subcommittees of the NCAA Women's Soccer Committee spent most of their annual meetings February 3-7 in Tucson, Arizona, discussing automatic qualification, bracket expansion and regional alignment for the 1997 championships.

The Division II championship will expand from the current 12-team bracket to 16 teams in 1997 while the Division III championship field will increase from 24 to 40 teams.

The joint committee also discussed ramifications of NCAA restructuring, which will divide the committee into three separate division committees beginning in August.

In addition, the committee, in conjunction with the NCAA Men's Soccer Committee, met with a representative from the National Intercollegiate Soccer Officials Association to discuss methods of enhancing the pool of officials for preliminary-round games, identifying more women officials to work the women's championships and improving the evaluation process.

Following are committee actions, by division.

Division I

The Division I subcommittee will recommend to the NCAA Executive Committee that automatic qualification be granted to the following conferences for the 1997 championship: America East; the Atlantic Coast, Atlantic 10, Big East, Big Ten, Midwestern Collegiate, Pacific-10, Southeastern, West Coast and Western Athletic Conferences; the Colonial Athletic Association; the Ivy Group; and the Patriot League.

Play-ins also will be conducted for the first time in 1997, and the subcommittee established the following pairings (home conference listed first): Conference USA vs. Trans America Athletic Conference; Southern Conference vs. Big South Conference; and Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference vs. Northeast Conference.

The subcommittee also reviewed selection criteria for the championship, noting that the ratings percentage index will be an additional tool available for the subcommittee's use in 1997. The index also will be available for use as a tool in determining automatic qualification for the 1998 championship.

The subcommittee also discussed implementing a financial guarantee for preliminary rounds but took no action, noting the need for continued evaluation and a review of data regarding net receipts and history of attendance.

In addition, the subcommittee reviewed site-selection procedures in conjunction with a review of the subcommittee's long-range plan for the championship. The subcommittee noted that bids for the 1999, 2000 and 2001 championships would be accepted through the 1997 championship at the University of North Carolina, Greensboro. The subcommittee affirmed that only bids from sites with a seating capacity of 15,000 or more would be considered.

In other actions, the Division I women's subcommittee:

* Voted that ticket prices for all rounds of the 1997 championship be the same as ticket prices for the Division I men's championship.

* Determined that the autograph sessions for the Youth Education through Sports clinic at the championship site are required for both finalists, including both head coaches. The subcommittee noted the importance of the autograph sessions and the overall impact that the YES clinic has on the local soccer community.

Division II

The Division II subcommittee will recommend to the Executive Committee that the country be realigned from six to eight regions for the 1997 championship to accommodate the new 16-team bracket. The subcommittee based its recommendation on the Division II regionalization policy of having an equal number of berths per geographic region.

The following is a list of regions, including the states within each region: New England (Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont); Great Lakes (Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia); Great Plains (Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas and Wyoming); West (Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Washington and Utah); South [Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi and Tennessee (Lambuth University, Lincoln Memorial University and Christian Brothers University]; Central (Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, Ohio and Wisconsin); Northeast (New Jersey, New York, Delaware, Maryland and Pennsylvania); and Southeast [North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee (Carson-Newman College and Tusculum College) and Virginia].

The subcommittee also established the following predetermined semifinal pairing rotation on a three-year basis (all first-round games will be within the region; second-round pairings will be cross-regional within geographic proximity): 1997 (New England/Northeast winner vs. Great Plains/West winner; Southeast/South winner vs. Central/Great Lakes winner); 1998 (New England/Northeast winner vs. Southeast/South winner; Great Plains/West winner vs. Central/Great Lakes winner); and 1999 (New England/Northeast winner vs. Central/Great Lakes winner; Southeast/South winner vs. Great Plains/West winner).

First-round games will be conducted November 14 or 15, followed by quarterfinal games November 21 or 22. The semifinals and final will be held December 5 and 7.

In other championship matters, the subcommittee voted to conduct its selection announcement via a telephone press conference on Monday, November 9. The subcommittee chair will announce the 16 teams selected along with the first-round pairings before fielding questions from media and institutional representatives.

The subcommittee also will recommend to the Executive Committee that for the semifinals and final only, an administrative representative be required to travel with the team and represent the institution in games committee meetings.

The subcommittee also will recommend to the NCAA Division II Management Council that the composition of the new Division II Women's Soccer Committee be increased from four to eight members, allowing representation from each of the geographical regions.

Division III

The Division III subcommittee will recommend to the Executive Committee that eight regions be established for selection purposes for the 1997 championship.

The regions (along with regional bids allocated for the 1997 championship) will be as follows: New England (four to five), New York (five to seven), Metro (four to five), Mid-Atlantic (four to five), Great Lakes (six), South (four to six), Central (six to seven) and West (two to three).

Teams will be paired into the 40-team bracket geographically, as much as possible. Regional pairings with an eight-region rotation and pairing within a four-team regional rotation (Metro, Mid-Atlantic, New York and New England regions and South, West, Great Lakes and Central regions) will be recommended.

The proposed four-team regional rotation is as follows (home region listed first): 1997 -- Metro vs. Mid-Atlantic, New York vs. New England, South vs. West and Great Lakes vs. Central; 1998 -- Mid-Atlantic vs. Metro, New England vs. New York, West vs. South and Central vs. Great Lakes; 1999 -- Metro vs. New England, New York vs. Mid-Atlantic, Great Lakes vs. West and South vs. Central; 2000 -- New England vs. Metro, Mid-Atlantic vs. New York, West vs. Great Lakes and Central vs. South; 2001 -- New York vs. Metro, New England vs. Mid-Atlantic, Great Lakes vs. South and West vs. Central; 2002 -- Metro vs. New York, Mid-Atlantic vs. New England, South vs. Great Lakes and Central vs. West.

Dates for the 1997 championship will be November 5 for first-round games, November 8-9 for regionals, November 15-16 for the quarterfinals and November 22-23 for the semifinals and final.

I men award 1999 and 2000 events to Charlotte

The NCAA Men's Soccer Committee discussed championship site selection, regional alignment and increased bracket sizes during its annual meeting February 3-7 in Tucson, Arizona.

The Division I men's subcommittee voted to award the 1999 and 2000 championships to Charlotte, North Carolina, while Divisions II and III focused on issues related to larger championship brackets beginning in 1997.

The joint committee also discussed ramifications of NCAA restructuring, which will divide the committee into three separate division committees beginning this August.

In addition, the committee, in conjunction with the NCAA Women's Soccer Committee, recommended an increase in officials' fees over the next three years ($145, $150 and $160 for referees; $105, $110 and $115 for assistant referees; and $50, $60 and $60 for alternate officials).

Following are committee actions, by division.

Division I

The Division I subcommittee will recommend to the NCAA Executive Committee that the 1999 and 2000 championships be held at Ericsson Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina. The University of North Carolina, Charlotte, and Davidson College would cohost the event.

Charlotte is no stranger to the championship. Davidson hosted the event from 1992 through 1994 and drew sell-out crowds of 8,150, 10,549 and 12,033 for the final.

The championship has been in Richmond, Virginia, since 1995 and attendance for the championship match has grown to more than 20,000 each year. Richmond will host the 1997 and 1998 championships, making it the city with the longest consecutive tenure in the championship's 38-year history.

"The role that Richmond has played in the evolution of this championship has been tremendous," said Jonathan B. LeCrone, commissioner of the Midwestern Collegiate Conference and chair of the Division I men's subcommittee. "Because of the growth of the event, the subcommittee felt comfortable in moving it to a larger venue. Charlotte's bid offers us two outstanding host institutions, the potential for broad-based corporate support and a state-of-the-art stadium."

The subcommittee noted that the next bid cycle will encompass the 2001 and 2002 championships. Bids will be accepted and considered during the subcommittee's 2000 meeting.

In other actions, the subcommittee recommended to the Executive Committee that automatic qualification be awarded to the following conferences for the 1997 championship: the Atlantic Coast, Big Ten, Big East, Midwestern Collegiate, Missouri Valley and West Coast Conferences; the Colonial Athletic Association; Conference USA; the Ivy Group; and the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation. The subcommittee also recommended that the Western Athletic Conference be granted a waiver from the two-year waiting period for automatic qualification.

In addition, the play-in pairings would be as follows (host conference listed first): Trans America Athletic Conference vs. Mid-Continent Conference; Atlantic 10 Conference vs. Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference; America East vs. Northeast Conference; Southern Conference vs. Big South Conference; and Mid-American Conference vs. Patriot League.

The subcommittee also agreed to recommend that the top eight teams be seeded beginning with the 1997 championship. Those eight seeds will be paired with lower-rated teams within geographical proximity. The remaining 16 teams then will be paired and placed into the bracket geographically.

The subcommittee also reviewed its championship selection criteria, adding the ratings percentage index to the list of primary criteria.

In addition, the subcommittee discussed the concept of conducting regional competition at future championships but took no action. The subcommittee was reluctant to implement such a concept without additional data and will ask the Executive Committee for permission to survey the Division I membership this spring.

In other actions, the Division I subcommittee: