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The next time Blake Murray takes the baseball field, he believes he’ll be competing for more than a win.
“I am excited because I will be a rising senior and finally will be able to compete for something meaningful,” said Blake Murray, junior first baseman. “I look forward to playing better competition.”
N.C. Central University will rejoin the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) in fall 2010, with the ability to compete for national championships in 2011.
The MEAC is a Division I conference comprised of most of the historically black colleges and universities along the east coast.
Established in 1969, the conference’s original members included Delaware State College (now Delaware State University), Howard University, The University of Maryland Eastern Shore, Morgan State University, North Carolina A&T State University and NCCU.
The MEAC currently has 13 members with the hope of adding one more school.
Athletes, as well as coaches, are excited about the move.
“I feel good about it ... when you are in a conference it makes things a lot easier,” said Georgette Crawford-Crooks, head volleyball coach. “I’m so excited, we are already playing schools in a conference, but to officially be in it is exciting.”
NCCU left the MEAC in 1979 when the conference moved to Division I because the University felt it didn’t have the money to stay competitive, said Kyle Serba, athletics spokesman.
The Eagles joined the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA), a Division II conference.
Before leaving the MEAC, the Eagles won nine MEAC championships, including football conference titles in 1972 and 1973.
University officials decided to apply for Division I status in 2005 to promote the school through athletics, Serba said. This was evident in the 2008-09 men’s basketball schedule, where the team’s away games included trips to Utah, Iowa, Michigan, Texas and Kansas.
“It is a great way for the university to market itself thru its athletics on a more national scale and we are trying to align our academic offers like other universities and a lot of schools in CIAA weren’t,” said Serba.
NCCU enjoyed success in the CIAA, including men’s basketball 1989 NCAA Division II National Championship and multiple conference championships in track and field and volleyball.
Playing Division I schools has been a challenge for the Eagles.
The football team went 4-7 last year and men’s basketball only won six games in 2008-09.
“We knew the wins and loses would be part of the transition, but the athletic administration is going well,” Serba said. “The staff has grown, more scholarships are available and student-athletes have more academic support.”
Even though NCCU won’t be eligible to compete for any NCAA championships for a few years, the Eagles will begin playing a MEAC schedule this fall, which is exciting for Murray.
“Although we can’t compete for an NCAA title, being in a conference, there is still something to play for whereas before there wasn’t,” he said.
“It also shows that we are moving forward in the NCAA and that’s good.”
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