Thursday, June 30, 2005

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (June 30, 2005) - The East Tennessee State University Department of Intercollegiate Athletics will officially begin its membership with the Atlantic Sun Conference on Friday.

The Buccaneers, who had been members of the Southern Conference since 1979, enjoyed a successful tenure in the SoCon. ETSU won over 75 conference team championships and had over 60 student-athletes earn Player of the Year honors during their time in that conference. However, the Bucs are eager to begin a new chapter in the storied history of ETSU athletics.

"Our program went through this over two decades ago when we moved from the Ohio Valley Conference to the Southern," said ETSU Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Dave Mullins. "That move was exciting for our program and we think the same will be true of our move to the Atlantic Sun. We have already taken a leadership role in the A-Sun and we look forward to growing our programs and being part of the long-term success of our new conference."

The Atlantic Sun Conference and its 11 teams stretch from Johnson City in the north to Boca Raton, Fla., in the south. Comprised of both private and public institutions, the A-Sun boasts schools that make their home in or near some of the nation's most metropolitan areas, including Nashville, Tenn., Atlanta, Ga., Charlotte, N.C., Raleigh, N.C., Jacksonville, Fla., Daytona Beach, Fla., and Miami, Fla. A benefit to ETSU is that these areas are also home to large segments of Buccaneer alumni, fans and supporters, meaning that the opportunities for these fans to see the Bucs play will be more prevalent than ever.

 For the A-Sun, success on the field of play has been important and the conference has a strong tradition of NCAA Tournament success. In baseball, the conference annually places multiple teams in the NCAA Tournament, and in recent years, the conference has done the same in the NCAA men's basketball tournament. Today, the schools that comprise the A-Sun include Belmont University, Lipscomb University, Mercer University, Kennesaw State University, the University of North Florida, Jacksonville University, Stetson University, Florida Atlantic University, Campbell University, Gardner-Webb University and ETSU.

Buccaneer fans are encouraged to learn more about these schools by visiting ETSUBucs.com or AtlanticSun.org. ETSU will be hosting the A-Sun Men's Basketball Tournament in both 2006 and 2007. The 2006 event will be played from March 2-4.