USA Triathlon (USAT) and Newberry College Director of Athletics Ralph Patterson have announced that Newberry College in Newberry, South Carolina, will add women’s triathlon to its varsity sport offerings.
The school is the 14th at the NCAA Division II level, and the only school in South Carolina, to sponsor the sport. The inaugural team will begin competition in the autumn/fall 2020 season.
“Adding women’s triathlon is exciting news,” Ralph Patterson said. “We are thrilled to add a growing women’s sport to our athletic program. We will begin the search for a coach this fall and look forward to having our inaugural women’s triathlon team on campus next fall.”
The NCAA named triathlon an Emerging Sport for Women in 2014, a designation that gives USA Triathlon a 10-year window to demonstrate the sport’s sustainability at the NCAA level by recruiting at least 40 varsity programs. The governing body is quickly approaching that goal with momentum on its side, as 28 schools have added the sport since January 2017, and 35 schools have done so since 2014.
“USA Triathlon is proud to bring Newberry College onboard as our newest women’s NCAA program,” said Rocky Harris, USA Triathlon CEO. “We applaud the school’s commitment to this emerging sport during a challenging time for collegiate athletics.
“Newberry’s prestigious academic reputation is sure to attract dedicated student-athletes who will bring their best both on and off the race course.”
Newberry College President Dr Maurice Scherrens said, “This is a great opportunity for us to add another quality athletic program, and I have no doubt that women’s triathlon will help us attract outstanding women student-athletes.”
The addition of women’s triathlon as an intercollegiate varsity sport at Newberry is made possible through a grant from the USA Triathlon Foundation. The USA Triathlon Foundation Women’s Emerging Sport Grant is distributed to select NCAA membership institutions to develop, implement and sustain women’s triathlon programs at the varsity level.
Newberry will benefit from competitive opportunities with fellow South Atlantic Conference schools: Lenoir-Rhyne University (Hickory, NC, DII), Queens University of Charlotte (Charlotte, NC, DII) and Wingate University (Wingate, NC, DII).
Nearby Belmont Abbey College (Belmont, NC, DII) and Guilford College (Greensboro, NC, DIII) also sponsor the sport.
Women’s triathlon is an autumn/fall sport, and the varsity season includes three regional qualifiers followed by the Women’s Collegiate Triathlon National Championships. Races are sprint-distance, featuring a 750m open-water swim, draft-legal 20km bike and 5km run.
