REPORT OF THE NCAA DIVISION I WOMEN’S COMMITTEE JUNE 14, 2021, VIDEOCONFERENCE

Action Item: The NCAA Division I Competition Oversight Committee will consider automatic qualification approval.

ACTION ITEMS.

1. Legislative items.

• None.

2. Nonlegislative items.

• Automatic qualification.

a. Recommendation. That the following 16 conferences be approved for automatic qualification for the 2022 NCAA Division I Women’s Lacrosse Championship:

American Athletic Conference; ; ; Atlantic Coast Conference; ASUN Conference; ; ; ; Colonial Athletic Association; The ; Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference; Mid-American Conference; ; Pac-12 Conference; and .

b. Effective date. 2022 championship.

c. Rationale. All the conferences have met requirements to receive automatic qualification.

d. Estimated budget impact. None.

e. Student-athlete impact. None.

INFORMATIONAL ITEMS.

1. Approval of 2020 meeting report. The committee reviewed and approved the report from last year’s annual meeting.

Report of the NCAA Division I Women's Lacrosse Committee June 14, 2021, Videoconference Page No. 2 ______

2. 2021 championship review – preliminary rounds.

a. Evaluations. Survey responses noted several concerns regarding facilities and the experience at some locations not being of a championship quality. The committee also discussed tightening up hosting specifications, which could potentially eliminate some top seeds from having the ability to host. Before making the adjustments, the NCAA staff will communicate concerns to previous hosts mentioned in comments and provide feedback on how to eliminate this issue in the future.

b. Hosting requirements. The committee strongly recommended that preliminary-round hosts adhere to the following: (1) Secure full-service hotels that provide team meeting space for each visiting team; (2) Provide adequate locker room space and proper restrooms for all teams attending each site; (3) Be capable of web streaming or televising the competitions; and (4) Ensure there is lighting for the fields that is adequate for games that may be web streamed or televised.

c. Other preliminary-round items. The committee determined that teams should be provided 90 minutes of practice on practice days throughout the championship preliminary rounds, and teams will only have access to the game field one day prior to competition.

The committee would like to continue predetermining the game times for the quarterfinal round to be between noon and 6 p.m. EST on Saturday and Sunday. The committee believes splitting the games between Saturday and Sunday provides a better opportunity for coverage and allows for more fan viewership. Also, the game time block for the second- round games will be extended to noon to 6 p.m. EST.

3. 2021 championship review – finals.

a. Evaluations. There were no major concerns on the championship site noted by participating teams.

b. ESPN game times. The committee discussed possibly moving more of the preliminary- round games onto linear coverage but also noted the excitement felt with the increase in coverage for all rounds and the selection show. Members did discuss possibly moving the semifinal games to later in the afternoon to potentially increase attendance and viewership.

c. Hotels. The committee wants to ensure that all championship team hotels are full service and have experience hosting large teams. There were several issues with properties not accommodating the team’s needs, which resulted in one team moving properties. Another property did not provide the updated sleeping rooms that were shown to the host during the site visit, which was noted and discussed with the manager. NCAA staff will continue to work with Anthony Travel to ensure all hotels can accommodate all needs. Report of the NCAA Division I Women's Lacrosse Committee June 14, 2021, Videoconference Page No. 3 ______

d. Operations. The committee noted that staff did an excellent job hosting the championship and provided an excellent experience for teams and fans.

4. 2022 championship preview.

a. Preliminary rounds. The committee noted the success of having predetermined sites for the 2021 championship and liked that process. Moving forward, the deadline to submit bid information for hosting a preliminary round will be moved up a week to ensure the committee has ample time to review and reach out to any potential hosts with concerns.

b. Final site. The committee discussed some concerns and changes that need to be made at the 2022 championship site. NCAA staff will work to communicate the information with Johns Hopkins University staff during the site visit and explore ways to enhance the championship.

5. Selection weekend.

a. Selection criteria. The committee reviewed the established selection criteria and did not recommend any changes. Members discussed the process of making changes to legislated selection criteria and the potential to do so in the future.

b. Selection show time. The committee noted that the selection show for 2022 will be aired on linear television again, potentially at 9 p.m. EST, and it will be a joint selection show that includes the men’s lacrosse championship bracket and information.

6. Strategic planning and future initiatives.

a. Sponsorship and conference affiliation. The committee reviewed upcoming changes to conference alignment and sport sponsorship for 2021-22 and noted the will no longer be sponsoring women’s lacrosse, which will reduce the number of automatic qualifiers to 15.

b. Travel party/bench area. The committee noted the travel party size was increased to 40 for the 2021 championship. The committee also discussed ideas for increasing the bench size to mirror that of the men and will finalize the approach after reviewing the recommendations coming from the men’s lacrosse annual meeting.

c. Review strategic plan. The committee reviewed the Division I Women’s Lacrosse Strategic Plan and determined verbiage regarding gender equity should be added.

Report of the NCAA Division I Women's Lacrosse Committee June 14, 2021, Videoconference Page No. 4 ______

7. Officials.

• Report from national coordinator. National Coordinator of Officials Laura Hebert joined the meeting to provide an annual report, which noted a lack of communication and expectations between the committee and the coordinator of officials. Moving forward, the expectation is to allow the committee to provide sound feedback to the coordinator of officials when determining the best officials for each game.

8. Playing rules update. Jay Fitzwater, coordinator of playing rules, joined the meeting to discuss the potential rules changes and points of emphasis for the upcoming season.

9. Regional advisory committee replacements. The committee noted the changes to the RAC for the 2021-22 season. NCAA staff will contact the appropriate conferences this fall for replacements.

Michael Scerbo, associate athletics director at Duquesne University, was voted chair of the committee for 2021-22.

10. Committee timeline. NCAA staff will make appropriate updates to the committee timeline for 2021-22.

11. Championship manual updates. The committee asked staff to make the necessary changes and general updates to the manuals in preparation for posting for the 2021-22 season.

12. Future meeting dates. The 2022 annual meeting will be held the week of June 13.

Committee Chair: Christy Leach, ; ASUN Conference Staff Liaison: Morgan DeSpain, Championships and Alliances

Division I Women’s Lacrosse Committee June 14, 2021, Videoconference Attendees: Ryan Cobb, University of , Berkeley. Kerstin Kimel, Duke University. Christy Leach, Stetson University. Kathryn Mirance, Manhattan College. Lynne Robinson, Mount St. Mary’s University. Michael Scerbo, Duquesne University. Absentees: Report of the NCAA Division I Women's Lacrosse Committee June 14, 2021, Videoconference Page No. 5 ______

None. Guests in Attendance: Laura Hebert, NCAA Coordinator of Officials. NCAA Staff Support in Attendance: Morgan DeSpain, Championships and Alliances. Other NCAA Staff Members in Attendance: Jay Fitzwater, Championships and Alliances. Linda Godby, Championships and Alliances. Matt Holmes, Championships and Alliances Amy Skiles, Championships and Alliances.

NCAA/08_30_2021:MTD/lmg