MONROE, La. – ULM has accepted an invitation to join the Coastal Collegiate Sports Association as a member for beach volleyball, as announced by the CCSA and ULM Director of Athletics Scott McDonald Friday afternoon. The Warhawks will begin play in the CCSA in the spring of 2020.
"ULM is excited to join the Coastal Collegiate Sports Association in beach volleyball," McDonald said. "The CCSA provides our beach volleyball program a high-level of competition with a championship experience for our student-athletes. ULM's student-athletes, coaches and our entire staff look forward to beginning beach volleyball competition in the CCSA this spring."
Beach volleyball members of the CCSA include UAB, College of Charleston, FAU, FIU, Florida State, Georgia State, LSU, South Carolina, Southern Miss, TCU, Tulane and UNC Wilmington. Missouri State was also introduced as a new member of the CCSA for beach volleyball on Friday.
"This is a huge step for our program," director of volleyball Charlie Olson said. "Not only will it benefit our team, but also the student-athlete experience as a whole. We now have the opportunity to extend our regular season and play for championships. The CCSA will challenge us to bring in better recruits and improve our competition levels. We couldn't be more excited about this opportunity to provide our team. Thank you to the administration for this chance. We won't disappoint."
The CCSA is the first conference home for ULM beach volleyball. ULM first offered beach volleyball in 2013.
According to the CCSA website (theccsa.com), the CCSA is a progressive NCAA Division I conference dedicated to the enhancement of opportunities for students. The conference was founded in 2008 as the Coastal Collegiate Swimming Association. It was founded jointly by the Atlantic Sun, Big South, Mid-Eastern Athletic and Southern Conferences to provide a championship opportunity for swimming and diving students at their member institutions. In 2015, the CCSA announced an expansion of championship opportunities with the addition of beach volleyball, and changed its name to the Coastal Collegiate Sports Association.
