DENVER – The University of Denver men’s lacrosse team will join the Eastern College Athletic Conference for the 2009-10 season, ECAC commissioner Rudy Keeling announced today.

Along with the Pioneers, Air Force, Bellarmine, Ohio State and Quinnipiac will join existing members Fairfield, Hobart and Loyola.

"The lacrosse world is going through a metamorphosis and the ECAC Lacrosse League has emerged stronger than ever," Keeling said. "The combination of the teams from the ECAC and the Great Western Lacrosse League will make us one of the power lacrosse conferences in the country."

Three of the eight teams in the newly constituted league qualified for the NCAA tournament last season: Denver, Loyola and Ohio State. Each of those teams had an RPI in the Top 25 in the final national rankings. Six of the eight teams in the new ECAC had .500 or better records last season.

“We are excited to join the ECAC men’s lacrosse league,” head coach Jamie Munro said. “This conference will provide tremendous competition that will help us prepare for the NCAA Tournament year-in and year-out.”

The Pioneers will remain in the Great Western Lacrosse League through next season. DU has been a member of the GWLL since 1998 and shared the league regular season title with Notre Dame and Ohio State in 2008, when Denver earned an at-large bid in the NCAA Tournament.

In its nine-year history, the ECAC Lacrosse League has enjoyed tremendous success. League members have earned 19 NCAA Tournament bids, and more than two-thirds (68%) of those berths have been at-large selections. An ECAC team has advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals in seven of the league's nine years, and in six of the last seven seasons. In 2003, the ECAC had four teams qualify for the NCAA tournament, a quarter of the 16-team field.

ABOUT THE ECAC

The ECAC is the nation's largest athletic conference with 321 Divisions I, II, and III colleges and universities from Maine to North Carolina. Established in 1938, the ECAC, a non-profit service organization, sponsors more than 100 championships in 37 men's and women's sports. The ECAC assigns more than 4,400 officials in 12 sports. The Conference, located on Cape Cod, administers eight affiliate sports organizations and six playing leagues, including the ECAC Lacrosse League. Established in 1999, the ECAC Lacrosse League is a Division I men's lacrosse league. Hobart College and Loyola College (Md.) joined the league in 2005, and added Fairfield University in 2006.

For the latest news, information, and statistics about the ECAC Lacrosse League, go to the league's new website: www.ecaclacrosse.com