So has anyone heard if SCSU Women's team is for sure varsity this fall?
That would give us 40 women's varsity teams.  I'm thinking a DI Midwest
league must be in the making right now with Minnesota, Mankato State,
Bemidji State and St Cloud perhaps starting play this fall.
--      --      --
>From USA Today (another first!):
 
St. Cloud State will put a women's varsity hockey team on the ice as soon
as this fall thanks to a $200,000 grant from the Minnesota Amateur Sports
Commission. The Commission awarded the money to the university to help
move up the timeline for the women's varsity program. SCSU officials said
a search for a coach would begin immediately.
 
Students from SCSU had filed a class action suit against the university
because the school has failed to raise its club women's ice hockey program
to varsity status. St. Cloud State was originally offered $125,000 by the
Minnesota Amateur Sports Commission to start a program this fall, but the
university turn it down saying it wasn't enough to meet the needs or
elevating the women's club team to varsity before the proposed 1999-2000
season. The students said other grants available had been available. Among
the assets at SCSU are two Olympic-sized ice rinks.
 
A quarter of the is earmarked for space renovation and the remainder for
start-up costs. SCSU president Bruce Grube said that fundraising will have
to be geared up to provide future scholarships. "This will be a transition
year for us," said SCSU athletic director Morris Kurtz. "It's late for
recruiting and scheduling so we'll likely have to supplement NCAA team
play with competitions against club teams from around the area."
 
 _____________
/
 good shooting
 hungerf
_____________/
 
HOCKEY-L is for discussion of college ice hockey;  send information to
[log in to unmask], The College Hockey Information List.