The Deep South Conference (DSC) was an

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

Division II men's lacrosse-only college

athletic conference An athletic conference is a collection of sports teams which play competitively against each other in a sports league. In many cases conferences are subdivided into smaller Division (sport), divisions, with the best teams competing at successively ...

that operated in the

Southeastern United States The Southeastern United States, also known as the American Southeast or simply the Southeast, is a geographical List of regions in the United States, region of the United States located in the eastern portion of the Southern United States and t ...

. It was founded in 1993 in advance of the 1994 NCAA lacrosse season, and expanded over time to as many as 10 schools. The conference dissolved after the 2013 lacrosse season.

History

The conference began in 1994 as the Deep South League with five inaugural members

Catawba Catawba may refer to: *Catawba people, a Native American tribe in the Carolinas *Catawba language, a language in the Catawban languages family *Catawban languages Botany *Catalpa, a genus of trees, based on the name used by the Catawba and other ...

Greensboro Greensboro (; ) is a city in Guilford County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 census, its population was 299,035; it was estimated to be 307,381 in 2024. It is the third-most populous city in North Carolina, af ...

Limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

, Pfeiffer, and

Virginia Tech The Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, commonly referred to as Virginia Tech (VT), is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia, United States ...

. In 1995 Greensboro and Virginia Tech left the conference and it added St. Andrews. In 1997 the DSC added

Wingate Wingate may refer to: Places New Zealand * Wingate, New Zealand, a suburb of Lower Hutt United Kingdom * Wingate, County Durham * Wingate Quarry, a Site of Special Scientific Interest in County Durham * Old Wingate, County Durham * Wingate ...

and Lees-McRae in 1999 Mars Hill became the seventh member of the conference. In 2004

Queens Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...

joined the Deep South followed by Belmont Abbey and

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

a few seasons later in 2006. In 2006 the conference saw its largest membership, with ten member schools. Following the 2006 season,

Conference Carolinas Conference Carolinas, formerly known as the Carolinas-Virginia Athletic Conference (CVAC) or the Carolinas Conference, is a List of NCAA conferences, college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) ...

began sponsoring men's lacrosse, causing several members to leave the Deep South. In 2009

Florida Southern Florida Southern College (Florida Southern, Southern or FSC) is a private college in Lakeland, Florida. In 2019, the student population at FSC consisted of 3,073 students along with 130 full-time faculty members. It offers undergraduate, gradua ...

joined the Deep South Conference and in 2011 Lenoir-Rhyne began sponsoring lacrosse and joined the DSC. The conference continued expansion in 2012, adding Florida Tech and the University of Tampa, bringing the conference to nine members. However, the continued growth of the sport soon led to the conference's demise. On July 3, 2012, the

South Atlantic Conference The South Atlantic Conference (SAC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level, which operates in the southeastern United States. The SAC was founded in 1975 as ...

, the all-sports home of four DSC members, announced that it would begin sponsoring four new sports, including men's lacrosse, in the 2013–14 school year (2014 lacrosse season). The sponsorship of men's lacrosse was made possible when

Coker College Coker University is a private university in Hartsville, South Carolina, United States. It was founded in 1908 and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. Coker's sports teams, nicknamed the Cobras, compete in NCAA Divi ...

, which already sponsored men's lacrosse, and former DSC member Queens were confirmed as new SAC members for 2013–14. This brought the number of SAC men's lacrosse schools to six. Five months later on December 6, the

Sunshine State Conference The Sunshine State Conference is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. All of its member institutions are located in the state of Florida, which is popularly k ...

, home to the other five DSC members, announced that it would also sponsor men's lacrosse in the 2014 season. This followed the announcement by another SSC member,

Lynn University Lynn University is a private university in Boca Raton, Florida, United States. Founded in 1962, the university awards Associate degree, associate, Bachelor's degree, baccalaureate, Master's degree, master's, and Doctorate, doctoral Academic degr ...

, that it would start sponsoring the sport in that season. These moves meant that the 2013 season would be the last for the DSC.

Final members

All of the final members of the conference are private schools that now play men's lacrosse in their all-sports leagues.

Former members

Greensboro College Greensboro College is a private college in Greensboro, North Carolina. It is affiliated with the United Methodist Church and was founded in 1838 by Rev. Peter Doub. The college enrolls students from 32 states, the District of Columbia, and 29 co ...

(1994-1995) NCAA Division III Independent *

(1994-1995) MCLA Division I SouthEastern Lacrosse Conference *

Limestone University Limestone University, formerly Limestone College, was a private university, private Christian university in Gaffney, South Carolina, United States. Established in 1845 by Thomas Curtis, a scholar born and educated in England, Limestone was the f ...

(1994-2006)

Pfeiffer University Pfeiffer University is a private university in Misenheimer, North Carolina, United States. It is affiliated with the United Methodist Church. History Pfeiffer originated from a home school operated by Emily Prudden in the late-19th century ...

(1994-2006) — Initially moved to

; later moved to the

NCAA Division III NCAA Division III (D-III) is the lowest division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States. D-III consists of athletic programs at colleges and universities that do not offer athletic scholarships to student- ...

USA South Athletic Conference The USA South Athletic Conference (formerly the Dixie Intercollegiate Athletic Conference or the Dixie Conference) is an intercollegiate athletic conference which competes in the NCAA's Division III. Member schools are located in North Carolin ...

* St. Andrews Presbyterian College (1995-2006)

Regis University (1997-2000) *

Lees–McRae College Lees–McRae College is a private college in Banner Elk, North Carolina, affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). Lees–McRae College sits in the Appalachian Mountains at above sea level, the highest elevation of any American college or u ...

(1997-2006)

Queens University of Charlotte The Queens University of Charlotte is a private university in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. It has approximately 1,900 undergraduate and graduate students. Established in 1857, the university offers 50 undergraduate majors, 58 minors, ...

(2004-2006)

Belmont Abbey College Belmont Abbey College is a private, Catholic liberal arts college in Belmont, North Carolina. It was founded in 1876 by the Benedictine monks of Belmont Abbey. The college is affiliated with the Catholic Church and the Order of Saint Benedict. ...

(2006)

Presbyterian College Presbyterian College (PC) is a private liberal arts college in Clinton, South Carolina, United States. It was founded in 1880 and is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). History Presbyterian College was founded in 1880 by Willia ...

(2006-2007) NCAA Division I Independent; later dropped the sport

National Championship

National Championships

* Limestone - 2000, 2002

Appearances

* Limestone - 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005

References

{{Reflist

External links

Deep South Lax
Defunct NCAA Division II conferences College lacrosse leagues in the United States