Brooklyn Campus to Join Skyline Conference in 2015-2016

September 09, 2014 BK

BROOKLYN, N.Y. – September 9, 2014 – St. Joseph’s College (SJC) is pleased to announce that effective 2015-2016, the varsity athletic teams of its Brooklyn Campus will join the Skyline Conference as announced by SJC President Jack P. Calareso, Ph.D. and Skyline Conference Commissioner Linda Bruno earlier today.

“St. Joseph’s is proud to have both of its campuses as members of the Skyline Conference,” said Dr. Calareso. "This opportunity will provide student-athletes on our Brooklyn Campus with the opportunity to compete against the best competition in NCAA Division III and showcase their talents, dedication and character to a wider audience.”

SJC’s Long Island Campus has been a member of the Skyline Conference since 1999 and has won the Presidents Cup—a measure of all-sports excellence in conference competition—four times in the seven years it has been awarded. The Brooklyn Campus achieved full NCAA Division III membership in September 2011, but has remained an independent member affiliated with the Association of Division III Independents. With this shift, the athletic program will conclude its long-standing membership in the Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference after the 2014-2015 season.

“We’re honored that Brooklyn will join their Long Island counterpart as members of the Skyline Conference,” said Commissioner Bruno. “St. Joseph’s has been a tremendous asset to the conference and I’m confident that the addition of the Brooklyn Campus will further our tradition of academic and athletic excellence.”

Formed in 1989, the Skyline Conference is comprised of 10 members located around the New York metropolitan region. It conducts championships in 17 sports, including all 13 intercollegiate varsity sports that SJC offers—men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s volleyball, men’s and women’s tennis, men’s and women’s cross country, women’s swimming, baseball and softball—with the conference champions receiving an automatic berth into the NCAA Division III National Championships.

“Joining an NCAA-affiliated conference was always in our roadmap of attaining NCAA membership,” said SJC’s Brooklyn Athletic Director Frank P. Carbone. “With the recent success and growth of our teams and programs over the past few years, I cannot wait for the enhanced competition and the new rivalries that are sure to develop with our joining the Skyline Conference.”

For more information about SJC’s Brooklyn Campus athletics, visit sjbkathletics.com.

ABOUT ST. JOSEPH’S COLLEGE
St. Joseph’s College has been dedicated to providing a diverse population of students in the New York metropolitan area with an affordable education rooted in the liberal arts tradition since 1916. Independent and coeducational, the College provides a strong academic and value-oriented education at the undergraduate and graduate levels, aiming to prepare each student for a life characterized by integrity, intellectual and spiritual values, social responsibility, and service. With campuses located in the Clinton Hill area of Brooklyn and in Patchogue, Long Island, the College offers degrees in more than 29 majors, special course offerings and certificates, affiliated and pre-professional programs.