The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) approved Point Park in mid-July to begin the second year of a three-year provisional Division II membership process.
The Pioneers will continue to compete in the Mountain East Conference (MEC) during another year of NCAA review.
Vice President of Athletics Scott Swain said that the transition to NCAA Division II was a positive experience as well as a learning experience moving forward.
“I think we did absolutely awesome our first year,” Swain said. “It is an adjustment. It’s a transition. We learned, and we kind of knew it.”
The NCAA granted Point Park membership in July 2024, allowing athletics an introductory year to develop an appropriate framework for competing in NCAA Division II athletics. If the university’s procedures satisfy NCAA rules, the institution gets approved to enter year two.
The second year of the membership process entails an all-encompassing review of Point Park’s athletic and academic resources set up in year one, ensuring compliance with NCAA rules.
While continuing to compete in the MEC, Point Park will use an athletic management software called ARMS to track and record data. The software provides a streamlined workflow and communication system moving forward in the NCAA.
“I’m very pleased that we got accepted into year two, because it’s not automatic at all,” Swain said.
Point Park previously competed in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) within the River States Conference (RSC). After decades of NAIA competition, the institution decided to take the athletics program to the next level.
The MEC granted Point Park the ability to compete in conference championships during its first year in the NCAA. Conference tournaments are often not guaranteed until later in the membership process.
“The Mountain East was nice enough to allow us to compete in the conference tournaments that we qualified for, which is rare,” Swain said. “We’re very thankful to the Mountain East for letting us do that…that’s an added benefit that we had.”
In its initial year of NCAA Division II play, the Pioneers earned two spots in the conference tournament, an MEC title and five individual track & field championships. The MEC also awarded Point Park several awards including four MEC Player of the Year, three MEC Freshman of the Year and two MEC Coach of the Year honors.
Point Park baseball dominated the MEC, leading the conference and earning an MEC Championship in the conference tournament. Since the institution was still in its first year of the membership process, the Pioneers could not compete in the NCAA tournament.
If Point Park completes its second-year requirements, it will enter the third and final year of the provisional membership process. The third year allows the NCAA to analyze how institutions are competing in their new conference and whether the programs are ready to compete in NCAA tournaments.
Point Park can compete in NCAA tournaments once all three years of provisional membership are completed.
“I think we know what we need to do to improve. It’s a transition,” Swain said. “It does not happen overnight…there’s a reason why the membership process is a multi-year [process].”
Point Park is one of nine institutions undergoing the Division II membership process. Three schools are in the second stage. This includes the former NAIA program Menlo, which is repeating year two of the membership process.
The Pioneers not only amped up the competition, but they are bolstering their programs along with it. The MEC will welcome two new Point Park programs to the conference this year, including women’s lacrosse and men’s wrestling. A new men’s lacrosse team will compete in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (GMAC), and a women’s wrestling team will compete in meets across nearby regions.
