This year, Seton Hill University (SHU) changed athletic conferences from the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WVIAC) to the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC). DJ Cannon, assistant coach for the baseball team, said that being a member of the PSAC will be better for recruiting within the state, although competition might be a little tougher. According to Cannon it will also “cut down on travel expenses and allow more fans to travel to away games.”
Teams at SHU will still play against WVIAC teams for the remainder of this year. The teams will not start competing in the PSAC until the next athletic year. Erika Wisniewski thinks the switch will, “negatively affect teams because of the size of schools and the competition…WVIAC has smaller Catholic schools like ours.”
“Competition is comparable but there are no weak volleyball teams and every time we play, it will be a highly competitive match,” said volleyball coach, Rick Hall. Hall also believes the switch will help recruiting at SHU. “There are local kids who want to stay in this area and play against schools in Pennsylvania,” he said.