Div. III Teams Keep Scholarships

The NCAA Division III membership voted Monday in favor of an amended proposal, allowing eight schools—including Harvard’s ECAC rivals Clarkson, Rensselaer and St. Lawrence—to maintain their Division III profile while still awarding Division I athletic scholarships in one men’s and one women’s sport.

The Division III Presidents Council set forth a proposal which would have ended the awarding of scholarships, if passed.

“This is a great day for ECAC hockey,” league commissioner Phil Buttafuoco said in a media conference call.

The vote turned out well for the ECAC, which days ago learned that the University of Vermont would become a member of Hockey East for the 2005-2006 season.

Had the vote gone differently, further membership changes were conceivable. Now, it seems the ECAC will only have to find a new 12th team—or decide to stay at 11.

—JON PAUL MOROSI