(04-13-2016 02:51 AM)Chuck_A Wrote: But they keep women's hockey? Really? I'm sure it costs more than the $600,000+ baseball does. Women's Hockey? I know it's the north, but come on. Title IX has made a mess of college athletics!
Title IX was a big part, but weather just isn't conducive to spring baseball up north. The baseball team had its first home series against Seattle last weekend, and that was a 40 degree weather.
Baseball - 605 k budget, 5 scholarships
Women's hockey - 1.3 m budget, 18 scholarships much of that endowed
Baseball - play 2 miles off campus at a municipal ballpark
Women's hockey - play on campus at a world class arena
Baseball - had the home run derby winner last year and two players were drafted
W hockey - has Olympian athletes, including USA, Canada, and Euros
Baseball - "crowds" of 300
W hockey - averages over 1000, 3000 attendance has been hit against Minnesota
Baseball - WAC opponents like Chicago St, UVU, and UTRGV
W hockey - WCHA opponents like Minny, Wisconsin, Ohio St
Baseball - perennial bottom dwellers in a weak league, made the DII World Series once
W hockey - ranked in the top ten, hasn't gotten over the hump on conference playoffs vs perennial powers Mn, WI
There were no plans to rebuild a baseball stadium on campus. That would have been very expensive considering more parking ramps would have to be built to replace parking lots.
NDSU has a nice minor league baseball stadium on its campus, so it recruits better than we can.
If we were in the Summit, it wouldn't have been on the chopping block. But the Big Sky doesn't have baseball, so it was cut.
Baseball was operated as a vestige of our time in DII. It did not conform to the desire of being competitive nationally or at least competitive in conference. The statewide budget cuts of 4% gave the athletic department an opportunity it could not pass up. Surprised it took so long to cut it.
This leaves Title IX room for FBS or potentially for men's lacrosse.