Men’s Golf Joins Capital Athletic Conference

(FREDERICKSBURG, Va.) – The Carnegie Mellon University men's golf team will join the Capital Athletic Conference (CAC) as an affiliate member for the start of the 2019-20 season, as announced by CAC Commissioner Jeff Ligney on Thursday morning. The Tartans will remain a member of the University Athletic Association (UAA) and continue to participate in the UAA Championship each spring.

"Joining the CAC is an excellent opportunity for our men's golf program and we are proud to join such a fantastic league," said Director of Athletics Josh Centor. "Carnegie Mellon will now have a chance to compete for an automatic bid to the NCAA Championships, something we have not previously had the opportunity to do in this sport. As we work toward competing for a national championship, we think this is an important mark for our program."

Formed in 1989, has six full-time member institutions beginning in 2019-20 located in Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia. Carnegie Mellon will compete with full-time members Christopher Newport, Mary Washington, Southern Virginia, York, and associate members Babson and New Jersey City to give the league seven schools that sponsor men's golf in 2019-20.

"The CAC is excited to have Carnegie Mellon join us as an affiliate member in men's golf," stated Ligney. "The Carnegie Mellon men's golf program is a highly competitive program in Division III and we look forward to the Tartans once again raising the level of competition in the CAC."

The Tartans, under the direction of Dan Rodgers, who is set to begin his fourth season as head coach in 2019-20 and is a two-time Mid-Atlantic Region Coach of the Year honoree, put together the best season in program history this past year. The Tartans placed 11th at the 2019 NCAA Division III Championships and ended the season ranked seventh nationally by Golfstat with an average team score of 298.32.

"This is great news for our program and we look forward to the competiveness of the CAC," said Rodgers. "The chance to play alongside these institutions for a bid to the NCAA Championship will continue the growth of our program."

Carnegie Mellon's appearance at the NCAA Championship was its second in the last three seasons. Rodgers also coached the first Tartan to be named a PING First Team All-American in Jason Li. The sophomore finished the championships 11th individually, which was the highest individual finish in program history.