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Saint Anselm men and women join Little East

H

HawksHockey

Member
MANCHESTER, N.H. – The Saint Anselm College men's and women's golf and men's and women's ice hockey programs have been announced as affiliate members of the Little East Conference (LEC), beginning with the 2027-28 academic year, Commissioner Albert D. Bean, Jr. announced on Tuesday morning.

"As Saint Anselm College embraces the opportunities of Division III, we are committed to ensuring that every one of our student athletes has the opportunity to compete, grow, and excel within a strong conference community," said Dr. Michael Lewis, President of Saint Anselm College. "We are delighted to join the Little East Conference as a partner in that journey for our ice hockey and golf programs. We look forward to building a meaningful relationship with the LEC and to watching our student-athletes carry the proud tradition of Saint Anselm forward with excellence, character, and distinction."

"We are thrilled to join the Little East Conference as an affiliate member in men's and women's golf and men's and women's ice hockey," said Saint Anselm Director of Athletics Phil Rowe. "The LEC provides an excellent competitive home for these four programs as we transition to NCAA Division III. We look forward to building relationships throughout the conference and providing our student-athletes with meaningful and rewarding championship experiences. We are grateful to Commissioner Bean, the Presidents Council, the Directors of Athletics and the entire LEC membership for welcoming Saint Anselm."

Saint Anselm will begin its transition from NCAA Division II to Division III in the same 2027-28 academic year and will join the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) as its primary conference. The golf and ice hockey programs will compete in the LEC with all programs becoming eligible for DIII championships in 2029-30 following a successful completion of the NCAA's reclassification process.

"We're excited to welcome Saint Anselm College to the Little East Conference as an affiliate member in men's and women's ice hockey, and men's and women's golf," said Bean. "Saint Anselm has a strong tradition of success across its athletic programs, and we're confident the Hawks will bring a high level of competition to the LEC in each of these four sports. We look forward to building a strong and successful partnership as we move forward together."

The men's ice hockey program has a proud history dating back to the 1969-70 season when the Hawks played their inaugural varsity season. The Hawks qualified for seven ECAC Division II Tournaments from 1972-73 to 1996-97 before a dominant run in the NE10. From the 1999-00 season to present, the Hawks have made 20 finals appearances with 11 championships to their credit, the most in league history. The team has produced multiple major award winners over nearly six decades, including Hubie McDonough '86 garnering the College Division Hobey Baker Memorial Award, Tucker Mullin '13 earning the Hockey Humanitarian Award, Coleman Noonan '11 claiming the Joe Concannon Award, and Mike Dumas '88 being named the ECAC Award of Valor recipient.

The women's ice hockey team began play in 2004-05 and quickly established itself as a premier program in the region, winning the ECAC Open title in its inaugural season competing against DII and DIII institutions. After joining the New England Women's Hockey Alliance (NEWHA) in 2017-18 as a founding member, competing against DI and DII institutions, the Hawks won the championship in their second season in the league and have made six championship game appearances. In all, the Hawks have captured eight conference championships with 21 postseason tournament appearances to their credit, with an all-time record of 410-172-40 (.691). Amanda Conger '20 was named the Hockey Humanitarian Award winner while three players in program history have been named finalists for the Laura Hurd Award for National College Player of the Year.

Both ice hockey programs practice and play on campus at the Thomas F. Sullivan Arena, which opened in August 2003.
 
HawksHockey said:
MANCHESTER, N.H. – The Saint Anselm College men's and women's golf and men's and women's ice hockey programs have been announced as affiliate members of the Little East Conference (LEC), beginning with the 2027-28 academic year, Commissioner Albert D. Bean, Jr. announced on Tuesday morning.

"As Saint Anselm College embraces the opportunities of Division III, we are committed to ensuring that every one of our student athletes has the opportunity to compete, grow, and excel within a strong conference community," said Dr. Michael Lewis, President of Saint Anselm College. "We are delighted to join the Little East Conference as a partner in that journey for our ice hockey and golf programs. We look forward to building a meaningful relationship with the LEC and to watching our student-athletes carry the proud tradition of Saint Anselm forward with excellence, character, and distinction."

"We are thrilled to join the Little East Conference as an affiliate member in men's and women's golf and men's and women's ice hockey," said Saint Anselm Director of Athletics Phil Rowe. "The LEC provides an excellent competitive home for these four programs as we transition to NCAA Division III. We look forward to building relationships throughout the conference and providing our student-athletes with meaningful and rewarding championship experiences. We are grateful to Commissioner Bean, the Presidents Council, the Directors of Athletics and the entire LEC membership for welcoming Saint Anselm."

Saint Anselm will begin its transition from NCAA Division II to Division III in the same 2027-28 academic year and will join the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) as its primary conference. The golf and ice hockey programs will compete in the LEC with all programs becoming eligible for DIII championships in 2029-30 following a successful completion of the NCAA's reclassification process.

"We're excited to welcome Saint Anselm College to the Little East Conference as an affiliate member in men's and women's ice hockey, and men's and women's golf," said Bean. "Saint Anselm has a strong tradition of success across its athletic programs, and we're confident the Hawks will bring a high level of competition to the LEC in each of these four sports. We look forward to building a strong and successful partnership as we move forward together."

The men's ice hockey program has a proud history dating back to the 1969-70 season when the Hawks played their inaugural varsity season. The Hawks qualified for seven ECAC Division II Tournaments from 1972-73 to 1996-97 before a dominant run in the NE10. From the 1999-00 season to present, the Hawks have made 20 finals appearances with 11 championships to their credit, the most in league history. The team has produced multiple major award winners over nearly six decades, including Hubie McDonough '86 garnering the College Division Hobey Baker Memorial Award, Tucker Mullin '13 earning the Hockey Humanitarian Award, Coleman Noonan '11 claiming the Joe Concannon Award, and Mike Dumas '88 being named the ECAC Award of Valor recipient.

The women's ice hockey team began play in 2004-05 and quickly established itself as a premier program in the region, winning the ECAC Open title in its inaugural season competing against DII and DIII institutions. After joining the New England Women's Hockey Alliance (NEWHA) in 2017-18 as a founding member, competing against DI and DII institutions, the Hawks won the championship in their second season in the league and have made six championship game appearances. In all, the Hawks have captured eight conference championships with 21 postseason tournament appearances to their credit, with an all-time record of 410-172-40 (.691). Amanda Conger '20 was named the Hockey Humanitarian Award winner while three players in program history have been named finalists for the Laura Hurd Award for National College Player of the Year.

Both ice hockey programs practice and play on campus at the Thomas F. Sullivan Arena, which opened in August 2003.
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As I thought it would play out. I love this addition for the Little East. It's basically the OG ECAC East back together again with Saint Anselm in D3 and the dissolving of the NEHC. Saint Anselm/Norwich games were always solid battles and Norwich usually had a strong contingent at games in Manchester. I think this is a win/win for both sides.
 
PrezdeJohnson09 said:
As I thought it would play out. I love this addition for the Little East. It's basically the OG ECAC East back together again with Saint Anselm in D3 and the dissolving of the NEHC. Saint Anselm/Norwich games were always solid battles and Norwich usually had a strong contingent at games in Manchester. I think this is a win/win for both sides.
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You’re being kind, sir. The last six exhibitions between Norwich and St A’s have been 8-2, 6-2, 6-0, 5-1, 7-1, and 6-3. All Norwich wins. When the games counted, over the last 12 Norwich is 8-2-2. The composite score in the 8 wins was 33-10.

The Hawks strengthen the women’s LEC, but not the men’s side.
 
KrbFlint said:
You’re being kind, sir. The last six exhibitions between Norwich and St A’s have been 8-2, 6-2, 6-0, 5-1, 7-1, and 6-3. All Norwich wins. When the games counted, over the last 12 Norwich is 8-2-2. The composite score in the 8 wins was 33-10.

The Hawks strengthen the women’s LEC, but not the men’s side.
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Saint Anselm now has the ability to recruit a higher level of player because the games actually count, AND they can qualify for the NCAA Division III postseason. It's actually shocking Norwich lost twice and tied twice to a team that was hamstrung, recruiting-wise, due to playing in the NE10.
 
HawksHockey said:
Saint Anselm now has the ability to recruit a higher level of player because the games actually count, AND they can qualify for the NCAA Division III postseason. It's actually shocking Norwich lost twice and tied twice to a team that was hamstrung, recruiting-wise, due to playing in the NE10.
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I actually hope you’re right. I’m all in favor of a stronger LEC, so I hope St. A’s does rise to the occasion.
 
KrbFlint said:
I actually hope you’re right. I’m all in favor of a stronger LEC, so I hope St. A’s does rise to the occasion.
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I mean, just off travel alone, the LEC schools no longer have to drive all the way to Castleton and play in an off-campus rink. Saint A's having a top-five (at least) rink in the LEC does improve the league even before they play a game.
 
We'll see how it plays out. I honestly think Saint Anselm will be in a better spot moving forward across the board competing in Division III. The NEWMAC is a bear of a league to be joining, so they are going to have to be on their game to compete with the best of the best. MIT, Springfield, Coast Guard and Babson are no slouch pretty much across the board in most sports.

Sullivan Arena (IMHO) immediately moves into the conversation for top 3 rinks in the league. It's on campus, you can have a realistic chance to compete to win your league and have a shot at the NCAA Tournament (something their men's team hasn't had in what, 20-30 years?).

I'm certainly not expecting them to be Norwich and probably even Babson, but to think they can't consistently be a top 3-5 team in the league or so and give competitive games and potentially beat Norwich/Babson I think is underselling their potential now.

As we all know, coaching and financial aid are big pieces of the puzzle. I don't know much about Coach Roche, but Ed Seney was at Saint A's for a long time and was pretty historically a .500 or so coach. The big thing for Saint A's moving forward is how will the University view athletics in the grand scheme of things. Just because you are dropping from D-II to D-III doesn't mean it will be less competitive to try and win. The athletic scholarship money is out the window, but you still need to provide competitive financial aid packages to compete with the schools that prioritize winning and strong athletics.

The travel alone though should be a major money saver for the non-hockey sports that had to travel all over the east coast and midwest to get games.

My gut says Saint Anselm is relatively competitive right out of the gate in men's and women's hockey. Should be towards the top of the LEC on the women's side competing with Norwich and on the men's side I feel like a mid-pack team out of the gate is certainly achievable with a chance at a home playoff game if things really click.
 
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