WEST HARTFORD, Conn.— University of Hartford will play host to the 2004 and 2005 Friendship Cottage Cheese America East Women's Basketball Championship at The Chase Family Arena at the Sports Center, a 3,977-seat facility on campus. The decision was reached by a vote of the conference's athletics directors at a meeting at the Beatrice Fox Auerbach Computer & Administration Center on the Hartford campus today.
The 10-team championship begins with first-round games on Wednesday, March 10. Quarterfinal games follow on Thursday, March 11. The semifinals and championship will be played Friday, March 12 and Saturday, March 13, respectively, and will be produced and televised as part of the America East TV package.
"Coming on the heels of very successful women’s basketball championships at Hartford the past two seasons, we look forward to a similar quality experience again this year," said Chris Monasch, Commissioner of America East. "The Chase Family Arena, and the central location of the campus relative to the other America East member institutions, coupled with our single-site format, give our fans a tremendous opportunity to enjoy four great days of college basketball."
America East has enjoyed tremendous success in women's basketball in recent years. The America East Champion receives an automatic bid to the NCAA Women's Basketball Championship, with Boston University making its first appearance this past March. University of Maine, the 2003 regular-season champion, and University of Vermont, the 2002 regular-season champion, were awarded bids to the Women’s National Invitation Tournament (WNIT) the last two seasons. In addition, America East sent multiple teams to the NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship in both 1999 and 2000. Six different institutions have represented the conference in postseason play since 1999.
"The University of Hartford is extremely proud to host the 2004 and 2005 Friendship Cottage Cheese America East Women’s Basketball Championships, and we look forward to extending our relationship with Friendship Dairies President Joe Murgolo," said Pat Meiser-McKnett, Director of Athletics at Hartford. "We are thankful for Friendship and their title sponsorship of the championship, and applaud their role in promoting women’s athletics and healthy living. President Walter Harrison and I are honored to be the host institution and to bring another four exciting days of women’s basketball to the community of Greater Hartford."
Friendship Cottage Cheese will be the sole title sponsor for the America East Women's Basketball Championship for the third-straight year. Friendship Cottage Cheese will also receive television exposure throughout the 2003-04 season as part of the America East Conference package, as well as radio exposure, signage and in-game promotions at the women's basketball championship. Program and ticket advertising for the women's basketball championship is also included. Additionally, Friendship Cottage Cheese will be included in the women's basketball championship logo, created specifically for the championship, and will receive exposure via the conference's web site--americaeast.com.
The America East Championship has utilized a single-site format since 1998. Maine hosted the event the first season, followed by Vermont in 1999, 2000 and 2001. Hartford hosted each of the last two seasons.
America East will consist of 10 teams for the 2003-04 season: University at Albany, Binghamton University, Boston University, Hartford, Maine, University of Maryland, Baltimore County; University of New Hampshire, Northeastern University, Stony Brook University and Vermont.
Game times and ticket information for the 2004 Friendship Cottage Cheese America East Women’s Basketball Championship will be announced at a later date.