Fairmont State welcomes Frostburg State to the MEC
On Thursday, Frostburg State University joined the Mountain East Conference following a unanimous vote of approval by the MEC Board of Directors. If accepted into the NCAA Division II process, Frostburg State would be slated to begin competition in the MEC beginning with the 2019-20 academic year. Full membership in the MEC will ultimately be contingent upon Frostburg State achieving active membership status in NCAA Division II.
“The administration, coaches and student-athletes at Fairmont State University are pleased to welcome Frostburg State to the MEC,” said Acting Director of Athletics Chad Fowler. “Frostburg is currently a highly competitive Division III program and we feel confident that their location, facilities and past success will make their transition to Division II and the MEC a success.”
Frostburg State, located in western Maryland just 30 miles from the West Virginia
border, is a public, four-year comprehensive university that has 4,725 undergraduate
students and over 600 graduate/doctoral students. It is fully accredited by the Middle
States Commission on Higher Education and is a member of the University System of
Maryland.
“We at Frostburg State believe this opportunity to align with the Mountain East Conference
in conjunction with our application to NCAA Division II will allow us to enhance our
focus on the student-athlete experience. We were impressed with the quality of competition
and attention that would be afforded them in the Mountain East Conference,” said Frostburg
State President Ronald Nowaczyk. “We see the MEC and the prospect of a move to Division
II as means to ensure that Frostburg State is keeping pace with the changing landscape
around us, and it demonstrates our commitment to striking the appropriate level of
balance between the student and the athlete.”
The Bobcats currently sponsor 17 of the MEC’s 19 championship sports with eight men’s
sports (baseball, basketball, cross country, football, outdoor track and field, soccer,
swimming and tennis) and nine women’s sports (basketball, cross country, lacrosse,
outdoor track and field, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis and volleyball).
Established in 2013, the Mountain East Conference has quickly established itself as
one of the top all-sports conferences in the country. In just five years, MEC institutions
have produced two team NCAA Division II champions, seven national finalists and 13
semifinalists. In addition to the athletic success, the MEC recognizes over 1,500
student-athletes annually for their academic success and additionally has had seven
“NCAA Elite 90” winners, which honors the individual with the highest cumulative grade-point
average at the finals site for each of the NCAA’s 90 championships.
