UNC Wilmington Seahawks

UNC Wilmington Seahawks
University	University of North Carolina, Wilmington
Conference	Colonial Athletic Association
NCAA	Division I
Athletic director	Jimmy Bass
Location	Wilmington, North Carolina
Varsity teams	19
Basketball arena	Trask Coliseum
Baseball stadium	Brooks Field
Soccer stadium	UNCW Soccer Stadium
Other arenas	Seahawk Natatorium (swimming and diving) Hanover Hall (volleyball)
Nickname	Seahawks
Colors	Teal, Gold, and Navy[1]
Website	www.uncwsports.com

The UNC Wilmington Seahawks (also UNCW) are the varsity athletic teams representing the University of North Carolina at Wilmington in Wilmington, North Carolina in intercollegiate athletics. The university sponsors nineteen teams including men and women's basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, swimming and diving, tennis, and track and field; women's-only softball, sand volleyball (fall 2015) and volleyball; and men's-only baseball. The Seahawks compete in NCAA Division I FCS and are members of the Colonial Athletic Association.^[2]

Teams

Individual teams

Men's	Women's
Baseball	Basketball
Basketball	Cross Country
Cross Country	Golf
Golf	Sand Volleyball (fall 2015)
Soccer	Soccer
Swimming & Diving	Softball
Tennis	Swimming & Diving
Track & Field	Tennis
	Track & Field
	Volleyball

Baseball

UNCW won the CAA’s automatic bid to play in the NCAA Regionals in 2004, 2006, 2012, and 2015. In addition, the program received at-large bids to the NCAA Tournament in 2003 and 2008. UNCW set a CAA record with four consecutive 40-win seasons from 2003–06 and set a school record with 44 victories in 2008, including a 21-game winning streak. The rich heritage of UNCW baseball began when the Seahawks captured the NCJAA 1961 and 1963 National Championships. The Seahawks have sent over 82 players to play professionally. UNCW has hosted the CAA baseball tournament at Brooks Field eight consecutive years and 10 times overall.

Men's basketball

UNCW basketball's program moved to Division I in 1976-77. In 1984, the Seahawks joined the ECAC-South Conference (also known as the Colonial Athletic Association). In their first conference home game at Trask Coliseum the Seahawks defeated George Mason. The first appearance in a CAA championship game came in 1987, just their third season of league play that saw them finish the regular season in 2nd place. UNCW would appear in three more CAA title games (1989, 1996, 1998) before capturing their first championship in 2000 with a 57-47 win over Richmond. UNCW won the title again in 2006 by beating Hofstra, 78-67.

The Seahawks’ first votes in any Top 25 poll came early in the 1992-93 season. Other notable wins that captured the attention of pollsters included roads wins at Miami(FL) and NC State (96-84). The first appearance in post-season play came in 1998 when they were selected for the NIT. They played again in the NIT in 2001.

UNCW has made four appearances in the NCAA Tournament. Their first trip came in 2000, where they lost to the #2 seed Cincinnati, 64-47.

In their second appearance in 2002, the 13th seeded Seahawks shocked the 4th seeded Trojans of USC with a 93-89 overtime win. They were defeated by Indiana in the second round, 76-66.

In 2006 the Seahawks earned a ninth seed and lost to #8 seed George Washington in overtime, 88-85.

Women's basketball

The UNCW women’s basketball program completed its 37th season of competition in 2010-11, including the last 25 as a member of the NCAA Division I ranks. The Seahawks began as a member of the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) in 1973-74 and spent 10 years as a member of the AIAW until the association’s disbandment following the 1982-83 season.

UNCW joined the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) for one season, recording a then-program best mark of 22-6 in its lone year of competition in the NAIA before joining the NCAA Division I ranks as a member of the ECAC-South Conference in 1984 (the league changed its name to the Colonial Athletic Association in 1985).

As a member of the CAA, the Seahawks have made two appearances in the CAA championship game, falling both times to Old Dominion (92-49 in 2000 & 76-48 in 2002). UNCW’s best regular-season finish came in 2010-11, when the Seahawks finished in a tie for second place with ODU, one game behind regular season champion James Madison.

The Seahawks are coached by Cynthia Cooper-Dyke, who was named the ninth coach in program history on May 10, 2010. A member of the Naismith Basketball Hall-of-Fame, Cooper-Dyke enjoyed a landmark playing career both in the WNBA as a member of the Houston Comets and internationally in Italy and Spain. She was a member of back-to-back national champion squads at the University of Southern California (1983, 1984) and represented the United States in international competition on five occasions, including the games of the 1988 and 1992 Olympiads.

In its first season under Cooper-Dyke, UNCW established a program record for victories in a season with 24 wins and made its first post-season appearance, accepting an at-large invitation to the 2011 Postseason Women’s National Invitation Tournament. The Seahawks defeated Richmond, 63-54, in the first round, but fell to Eastern Michigan at home in the second round by an identical 63-54 margin.

Additional athletics

The men’s swimming and diving team has won the CAA title for 12 consecutive years, from 2002 through 2013. The men's track & field team won its 10th team title in 2009. The men’s tennis team has won the CAA title twice in the last three years (2009, 2011) by defeating VCU. The men’s golf and women’s golf teams each won the CAA title in 2011 and 2012 to give them four conference championships apiece. UNCW also captured the men's and women's CAA soccer titles in 2009. UNCW introduced Sand Volleyball as a sponsored athletics offering in the spring of 2015. The program will begin in the fall of 2015 and participate in its first competitive season in the spring of 2016.

References

1. UNCW Seahawks - Official Brand Identity Usage and Style Guide (PDF). 2015-01-28. Retrieved 2016-04-01.
2. http://www.caasports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=8500&ATCLID=1366961

External links

• Official website