Jan. 20, 2012

Longwood expected to join Big South

Longwood University has scheduled a press conference for Monday where it is expected to announce it will enter the Big South Conference.

Located in Farmville, Va., Longwood began its move from Division II to Division I in 2003 and played its first full Division I baseball schedule during the 2005 season. The Lancers have competed as an independent since then.

Longwood would become the 12th member of the Big South and give the conference four schools each in Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina. The current membership includes Liberty, Radford and VMI in Virginia; Campbell, Gardner-Webb, High Point and UNC Asheville in North Carolina; and Charleston Southern, Coastal Carolina, Presbyterian and Winthrop in South Carolina.

Longwood would be the final independent in Division I baseball to find a conference home. Of the five independents for the 2012 season, Nebraska-Omaha will join the Summit League next year, while CSU Bakersfield, Dallas Baptist and Seattle will compete in the WAC in 2013.

Head coach Buddy Bolding is in his 34th year as head coach of the Lancers, with an overall record of 900-495-4 in 33 seasons at Longwood. On October 3, 2009, the University dedicated the baseball facility as Charles Buddy Bolding Stadium.

The Lancers were 28-18 a season ago, including 17-9 at home and 11-9 on the road. Longwood posted two wins over James Madison and one over VCU in 2011.