North East Collegiate Volleyball Association
The North East Collegiate Volleyball Association (NECVA) was a men's volleyball collegiate association founded in 1995 and disbanded in 2011. At the time of its demise, it was the largest known single-sport conference in the United States. The NECVA was a leading Division III men's volleyball conference, which comprised 43 universities and colleges stretching from New Hampshire to Virginia in its final season.
The NECVA folded in 2011, after the NCAA announced it would begin organizing a Division III national championship in 2012.
History
Founded in 1995 as the Metro Conference, it became known as the NECVA in 1998. Albertus Magnus College, Daniel Webster College, Emerson College and St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) joined the conference for the 2009 campaign. Elmira College and Penn State Behrend joined the conference in the 2010–11 season as members of the newly formed United Volleyball Conference.[1]
The league was divided into five smaller divisions: CUNYAC (8), GNAC (7), Metro (10), New England (8), and Western (9) with one associate member. Each week, schools from the five divisions nominated athletes and then voted for the divisional Player and Rookie of the Week awards. The conference sports information office then selected the NECVA Player and Rookie honors from each of these five divisional winners.
The NECVA held an annual 16-team conference tournament called the NECVA Championship Tournament each April with the top two schools in each division and six at-large selections earning berths. The NECVA champion received an automatic bid to the Molten Division III Men's Invitational Volleyball Championship Tournament in April.
NECVA Executive Board and Administration
Commissioner: Joanne Merrill
Assistant Commissioner for Athletic Communications: Ira Thor
Executive Director: Gerald Matacotta
Executive Board: Ray Bello • Paul Dill • Patrick Dorywalski • Keith Koch • Craig Kolek • Don Vanderbeck
Notes: Michael J. Ricciardi [Ramapo College] served as Commissioner from 1995 until his death in 2010. Rachel Pinton served as Interim Commissioner to finish the 2010 season until Joanne Merrill [Rivier College] was elected for the 2011 season.
Notes
External links
- http://www.necva.org/ - archived official website of the North East Collegiate Volleyball Association.
See also
- NCAA Men's Division III Volleyball Championship, the tournament that led to the demise of the NECVA
- NCAA Men's National Collegiate Volleyball Championship, the top-level NCAA men's volleyball championship
- Molten Division III Men's Invitational Volleyball Championship Tournament, the predecessor to the NCAA Division III championship, in which the NECVA champion played
- NECVA Championship Tournament
