The NCAA News - News and Features

The NCAA News -- September 13, 1999

Notes

Facilities: Canisius College christened its new AstroTurf field August 29 with a women's soccer game against the University of Maine, Orono. The new $975,000 surface replaces the previous AstroTurf that was installed in 1989.

Sports sponsorship: St. Mary's College (California) will elevate women's lacrosse to varsity status beginning with the 1999-00 school year. The college is in the process of conducting a search for a head coach. St. Mary's is the first West Coast Conference team to establish a Division I women's lacrosse program. "Women's lacrosse has sustained interest among undergraduate students over a long period of time," said St. Mary's athletics director Rick Mazzuto. "That made the elevation to varsity status an obvious choice." The addition will bring to 15 the total number of sports offered at St. Mary's, including eight at the Division I level.

Conferences: The Big East Conference will add Virginia Polytechnic and State Institute as a full-time member beginning with the 2001-02 academic year.

Milestones: Bowling Green State University women's volleyball coach Denise Van De Walle entered the 1999 season four wins shy of the 300-victory plateau. Va De Walle, the winningest coach in Bowling Green volleyball history, ranks second all-time on the Mid-American Conference list.

Etc.: Seton Hall University has unveiled new logos for its athletics programs. The primary mark for Seton Hall athletics incorporates a contemporary im-age of the Pirate with the Seton Hall name in new lettering. "We wanted to create a set of graphics that is focused and consistent, has a classic appearance the will represent us for many years, and creates
pride and excitement for our teams," said Jeff Fogelson, Seton Hall's director of athletics. The creation of the new athletics logos was done in conjunction with the design of a new emblem for the university, which will be introduced later this
month.

-- Compiled by Gary T. Brown