The ENC athletic department recently announced three new Varsity NCAA sports to its athletic roster. Men’s Volleyball, Women’s Track and Field, and Men’s Track and Field will be implemented during the 2016-17 seasons.

Athletic Director Brad Zarges did not originally plan to implement the sports right away, but the campus decision seemed to be geared toward incoming classes.

“Adding new sports to the program wasn’t on the top of my list of things to do, but I am extremely excited for the future of our programs and where we are headed,” Zarges stated.

“[The implementation] was based on a number of criteria, including a recognized interest among prospective students to participate at the college level in these sports,” President Corlis McGee said.

With the expansion of the athletic offerings at ENC, the department will now allow more students opportunities to be involved, as well as strengthening our existing partnership with the Quincy Recreation Department, since the Track and Field teams will use Faxon Field for their practices.

The purpose of the addition of sports was to be inclusive, which has garnered support from student athletes and non-athletes.

“The new programs will bring us new types of athletes, which brings insights and different mindsets to our campus,” Junior Joanna Joseph said.

Many students have also requested Lacrosse and Rugby to be added on, and though they are not a part of the athletic program now, there are high hopes for the future in ENC’s athletic department and the potential addition of even more sports in the future.

The addition of new sports has reached far beyond the current students, and commanded interest and support from alums.

“I am very excited about the addition of three new sports being added to Eastern Nazarene College. Athletics have always been an integral part of the ENC community, and this positive change will only help expand the program.  The input from the Leadership team and the clear vision from Dr. Brad Zarges has really helped keep us focused on what we want the future of the ENC athletic program to be,” ENC alum Anne Cawthorne said.