SUNY Canton Athletics Enters NCAA Exploratory Year

CANTON, NY (09/19/2011)(readMedia)-- SUNY Canton Athletics has officially begun its NCAA exploratory year, the first step in a process the college hopes will eventually lead to provisional and eventually full-fledged Division III membership.

The National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III Membership Committee approved SUNY Canton's exploratory application this summer.

"We're honored to be approved as an NCAA exploratory institution this year," said Athletic Director Randy B. Sieminski. "The athletic department has benefited greatly from the extraordinary overall growth of the college, and we have worked diligently to mirror that growth by recruiting outstanding student athletes who desire to be successful both on and off the field or court."

SUNY Canton has added three new sports this year: men's golf, women's volleyball, and women's lacrosse. Volleyball has won seven of its last nine matches and now has a record of 7-6. Men's golf recently finished second in a pair of tournaments in Maine, and recorded a solid performance at the SUNY Cobleskill Invitational this past weekend. Women's lacrosse looks forward to beginning its season this spring.

The Kangaroos currently have twelve sports teams and plan to add women's ice hockey and men's lacrosse next year. Men's teams currently include soccer, golf, cross country, hockey, basketball and baseball. Women's sports include soccer, volleyball, cross country, basketball, lacrosse and softball.

The college opened its new $42 million Convocation, Athletic and Recreation Center this past summer. The facility features three basketball courts in a spacious field house, a swimming pool, ice rink, fitness center, athletic administrative offices, batting cages, an indoor track, beautiful locker rooms with individual stalls, and much more.

Sieminski and other college officials will travel to the NCAA headquarters in Indianapolis this week for NCAA Division III Exploratory Membership Orientation Meetings.

"The NCAA would be a perfect fit for SUNY Canton," Sieminski said. "In addition to having three other NCAA schools within ten miles, most of the other four-year schools in New York and New England, including most SUNY schools, are NCAA members. We also feel strongly that our philosophies and ideals regarding student-athlete success, intercollegiate athletics, community involvement, and others, match up perfectly with the NCAA."

This season SUNY Canton's athletic teams are participating in the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA). The USCAA focuses specifically on smaller institutions of higher learning. It is a governing body similar to the NCAA and NAIA with nearly 100 member institutions that compete for regional and national titles. SUNY Canton teams are playing against a variety of NCAA, NAIA and USCAA teams this season.

SUNY Canton offers 21 career-driven bachelor's degrees in addition to its associate and certificate programs. SUNY Canton OnLine features more than 150 courses online each semester. The College is home to a brand-new athletic facility, nicknamed Roos House, and the Grasse River Suites, offering students single rooms in apartment-style settings while they live on campus.

-www.canton.edu-