TCNJ Lions

TCNJ Lions
TCNJ Lions
University	The College of New Jersey
Conference	NJAC
NCAA	Division III
Athletic director	Amanda V. DeMartino
Location	Ewing, New Jersey
Varsity teams	11 men's, 11 women's
Football stadium	Lions Stadium
Basketball arena	Packer Hall
Baseball stadium	George Ackerman Park
Softball stadium	Dr. June Walker Field
Soccer stadium	TCNJ Soccer Complex
Aquatics center	TCNJ Aquatic Center
Mascot	Roscoe the Lion
Nickname	Lions
Colors
Website	tcnjathletics.com

The TCNJ Lions are the athletic teams representing The College of New Jersey (TCNJ). They are a member of the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) and compete within Division III of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).^[1]

Overview

The school fields 11 varsity sports teams for men and women each and has captured 44 team national championships, as well as more than 40 individual and relay national championships, across multiple programs. The school's two most successful are the Women's Lacrosse team with 12 NCAA Division III Championships and the Women's Field Hockey team with 11 Division III NCAA Championships, the most of any team in D-III for either sport.

The wrestling team hosts has placed in the top 20 nationally for 30 consecutive years, including 5 national championships (1979, 1981, 1984, 1985, 1987), 5 runner-up finishes, and numerous finishes in the top 5.

TCNJ's varsity teams are the top combined first- and second-place finishers of all 424 Division III schools in the nation over more than 25 years.^[2]

In 1957, TCNJ, then known as Trenton State College, was a founding member of the NJAC (then called the New Jersey State Athletic Conference) along with five other state institutions.^[3] Since then, and after the conference allowed women's sports in 1985, the school has been a powerhouse winning the most titles in men's cross country, women's cross country, field hockey, women's tennis, women's soccer.

The track and field teams have especially dominated the NJAC since the title was first contested in 1997, winning each year in both indoor and outdoor.

In 2017–18, TCNJ captured its first NJAC cup, after claiming titles in women’s cross country, field hockey, women’s tennis, women’s indoor track & field, and women’s lacrosse, and NJAC regular season titles in softball and baseball.^[4]^[5]

Outside of varsity athletics the school also hosts 15 club sports including a men's ice hockey team that competes within the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) at Division I.^[6]^[7] The team is a member of the Northeast Collegiate Hockey League. Prior to 2022, the team competed in ACHA Division II and won championships in various conferences such as the Great Northeast Collegiate Hockey Conference (2012, 2014) and the Colonial States College Hockey Conference (2017, 2018, 2019, 2020).^[8] Following the jump to ACHA Division 1, a second men's ice hockey team was launched which currently competes in the Atlantic Coast Collegiate Hockey League (Men's 2A Tri-State Division).^[9]

Sports

Men's sports	Women's sports
Baseball	Baskeball
Basketball	Cross country
Cross country	Field hockey
Football	Lacrosse
Soccer	Soccer
Swimming	Softball
Tennis	Swimming
Track and field (indoor)	Tennis
Track and field (outdoor)	Track and field (indoor)
Wrestling	Track and field (outdoor)

Club sports

Baseball
Basketball (women)
Bowling
Crew
Cheerleading
Ice hockey
Lacrosse (men and women)
Rugby (men and women)
Soccer (men and women)
Softball
Swimming
Tennis
Ultimate frisbee
Unified sports (Special Olympics and TCNJ students)
Volleyball (men and women)

Championships


National and NCAA championships
Field Hockey	1981, 1983, 1985, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1995, 1996, 1999, 2011, 2014
Women’s Lacrosse	1981 (AIAW), 1985, 1987, 1988, 1991, 1992*, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2005, 2006
Men's Soccer	1964 (NAIA), 1965 (NAIA), 1996
Women’s Soccer	1993, 1994, 2000
Softball	1980 (AIAW), 1981 (AIAW), 1983, 1987, 1989, 1992, 1994, 1996
Women’s Tennis	1986
Wrestling	1979, 1981, 1984, 1985, 1987

- The NCAA vacated the 1992 Women's Lacrosse title due to use of an ineligible player during the tournament^[10]^[11]
- List of individual TCNJ national champions


New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) championships
Baseball	1960, 1961, 1981, 2000, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2017, 2019
Men's Basketball	1967, 1989, 1998, 2019
Women's Basketball	2001, 2004, 2006, 2009
Men's Cross Country	1965, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1991, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2021
Women's Cross Country	1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018
Field Hockey	1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019
Football	1980, 1983, 1988, 1990, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2007
Women's Lacrosse	2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019
Men's Soccer	1959, 1960, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1969, 1970, 1974, 1976, 1981, 1994, 2005
Women's Soccer	1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2017, 2018, 2019
Softball	1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2019
Men's Swimming and Diving	1994, 1995, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016
Women's Swimming and Diving	1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016
Men's Tennis	1997, 1998, 2019^[12]
Women's Tennis	1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019
Men's Track & Field (Indoor)	1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013
Men's Track & Field (Outdoor)	1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
Women's Track & Field (Indoor)	1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2018, 2019
Women's Track & Field (Outdoor)^[13]	1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011