Point Park welcomed the largest group of incoming student-athletes in school history this fall. An estimated 272 students began their time as Pioneers to participate in the rapidly growing athletics program.
The new class of students doubled the size of athletics, combining for roughly 425 student-athletes at Point Park. These students will partake in NCAA Division II competition on one or multiple of 17 teams on campus this year.
“This just adds more vibrancy to the University community and also to Downtown Pittsburgh,” President Chris Brussalis said.
The rapid growth of student-athletes might be attributed to three potential factors: the transition to NCAA Division II, the addition of four new athletic programs and a university-wide enrollment spike.
The NCAA granted Point Park membership in July 2024. The Pioneers began competing in the Mountain East Conference (MEC) last year, as the university enters year two of a three-year provisional membership process.
“Recruiting to NCAA Division II and recruiting to the Mountain East Conference has upped our profile a great deal,” Vice President of Athletics, Scott Swain, said.
The Pioneers concluded their introductory season of MEC play in the 2024-25 school year, finishing with two spots in conference tournaments, an MEC title and five individual track & field championships. The MEC also awarded Point Park awards such as four MEC Player of the Year, three MEC Freshman of the Year and two MEC Coach of the Year honors.
“We’ve always been very successful in recruiting high-caliber student athletes,” Brussalis said. “We’ve always been successful. This is making it easier for us to do, and it’s providing our students more opportunities.”
Point Park added four new programs to athletics last year, including men’s and women’s lacrosse, and men’s and women’s wrestling. All four teams will debut this year.
Women’s lacrosse and men’s wrestling will compete in the MEC, men’s lacrosse will compete in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (GMAC) and women’s wrestling will compete independently in Division II.
Swain said that the university will expand the use of Highmark Stadium, one of the centerpieces of Point Park’s athletic program and the home of the Pittsburgh Riverhounds and Riveters.
“We’ve got an incredible, beautiful, great facility,” Swain said. “[Highmark Stadium] is one of the best facilities in all of Division II.”
Overlooking Downtown Pittsburgh, Highmark Stadium is a top-of-the-line facility that will continue to serve Point Park’s soccer teams and now lacrosse teams.
The athletic program expansion coincided with a massive growth in Point Park enrollment as a whole: Point Park saw a spike in incoming students this fall, welcoming record numbers of first-year Pioneers.
Although the official census has not been released, Brussalis said that the estimated number of freshmen is between 750 and 770 students. This is an approximate 20-25% increase from the 2024-25 class.
Historically, the Conservatory of the Performing Arts (COPA) attracted the largest number of students to Point Park each year, as one of the leading programs on campus. According to Point Park’s 2024 admissions summary, COPA students made up 36% of the undergraduate population and 25% of both undergraduate and graduate student populations.
Swain shared that the growth in athletics helps foster another focal point of the university.
“Being multifaceted and diversified as a university is only a good thing,” Swain said. “So there’s not only a reliance on COPA. You have multiple things that you [excel] at as a university.”
Brussalis and Swain spent the last year working toward properly accommodating the growing population of Division II student-athletes at Point Park. This includes a new wrestling facility in the Point Park Student Center and completed renovations of the fitness center.
“One of the biggest reasons why we totally redid the workout area in the Student Center was not only because we were going Division II,” Swain said. “We had to upgrade that facility because we’re going to have a lot more student-athletes using it.”
The athletic department is also working on local partnerships for additional practice facilities off campus.
Fall sports begin this weekend with women’s golf, men’s golf, women’s cross-country, men’s cross-country, volleyball and men’s soccer all on the road.
