WILMORE, Ky. — The Collegiate Conference of the South (CCS) today introduces Asbury University (AU) as a full conference member, effective July 1, 2024. Asbury is in its final provisional year with the NCAA and is poised to achieve full Division III membership in the upcoming fall of 2024.
The CCS is an NCAA Division III athletic conference that began play during the 2022-23 academic year. The conference features nine member institutions: Agnes Scott College; Berea College; Belhaven University; Covenant College; Huntingdon College; LaGrange College; Maryville College; Piedmont University; and Wesleyan College. It sponsors championships across 14 sports.
“Asbury University is honored and excited to join the Collegiate Conference of the South (CCS),” said Dr. Kevin Brown, president of Asbury University. “We are proud to join a conference whose schools strive for academic rigor, student development, and high-level athletic performance that prioritizes effort, excellence, hospitality, and character. We are excited for the days ahead!”
“From the beginning of the formation of the Collegiate Conference of the South, expanding membership has been a topic of conversation. I am absolutely thrilled to add Asbury University and want to thank our Presidents Council for their leadership and prioritizing conference membership,” said Beth Vansant, CCS commissioner. “Asbury truly understands the NCAA Division III philosophy and commitment to a holistic approach for student-athletes. I look forward to developing relationships with the community of Asbury in the years to come.”
As Berea College prepares to depart at the end of this academic year, the inclusion of Asbury University ensures that the CCS remains a consortium of nine member institutions. AU will be the fifth NCAA Division III institution in Kentucky.
“Asbury is an institution deeply dedicated to development of the whole student, which makes for an ideal fit with the CCS,” said Dr. Bryan Coker of Maryville, CCS Council of Presidents Chair. “We have been quite impressed with the entire Asbury community and are so excited to welcome them to the conference.”
In 2021, the NCAA announced AU’s approval to Division III provisional membership. Following the announcement, the NCAA approved AU’s application to waive the exploratory year, making Asbury the first institution to be granted the waiver to accelerate the membership process from four years to three years.
“This is a monumental step in the growth of Asbury Athletics. We are deeply grateful for the opportunities membership in the CCS will provide our student-athletes and coaches,” said Mark Whitworth, vice president for intercollegiate athletics & university communications. “We will work diligently to represent the CCS in a way that reflects positively on the member institutions and fulfills our mission.”
The Collegiate Conference of the South was officially established in January 2022 with its first year of competition beginning in 2022-23. In addition to men’s and women’s soccer, the CCS sponsors baseball, men’s basketball, women’s basketball, men’s cross country, women’s cross country, men’s golf, softball, women’s outdoor track & field, men’s outdoor track & field, men’s tennis, women’s tennis, and women’s volleyball.
Asbury University is a Christian liberal arts institution in the heart of Kentucky with 15 academic departments offering more than 150 undergraduate areas of study, along with graduate degrees and certification programs in business administration, media communication and education and an online adult professional services program. More than 22,000 living alumni surround the globe, leading and serving in all 50 states and at least 80 nations. asbury.edu
Asbury sponsors 16 intercollegiate sports, as well as cheerleading, representing more than 350 student-athletes. Men’s sports include: baseball, basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, swimming, tennis, and track and field. Women’s sports include: basketball, cross country, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track and field, and volleyball. asburyeagles.com
