Manchester, Mastadons To Host Five NCAA Championships In Fort Wayne

April 20, 2017 at 3:55 p.m.
Manchester, Mastadons To Host Five NCAA Championships In Fort Wayne
Manchester, Mastadons To Host Five NCAA Championships In Fort Wayne

By Mark Adkins-

FORT WAYNE- In announcements made by the NCAA Tuesday, the Fort Wayne Mastodons and Manchester University Spartans were selected to host a total of five separate NCAA basketball championships events, starting in 2019, all taking place at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum.
Visit Fort Wayne and the Memorial Coliseum partnered with both local institutions to submit a total of 25 bids during the summer of 2016, for events taking place from 2019 to 2022. The NCAA announced championship event hosts for all sports in all three divisions for all four years.
"Fort Wayne has a proud tradition of basketball and hosting visitors, and these events will be excellent opportunities to expand our sports tourism resume," adds Dan O'Connell, President of Visit Fort Wayne.
For Division III, Manchester University was selected to host the men's basketball Division III Final Four in 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022. Dates are March 15-16 (2019); March 18-19 (2020); March 19-20 (2021); and March 20-21 (2022). The successful bid process concludes what will be a 23-year stay in Salem, Virginia, at the end of 2017-18.
The last time the Division III men's basketball Final Four wasn't in Salem was 1995, a year Manchester University fans remember well as the Spartans, under the guidance of former head coach Steve Alford, made their memorable run to the national championship game in Buffalo, N.Y. Visit Fort Wayne estimates that the economic impact for the local community will be $575,000 for each of the four years that the event was awarded to Fort Wayne.

FORT WAYNE- In announcements made by the NCAA Tuesday, the Fort Wayne Mastodons and Manchester University Spartans were selected to host a total of five separate NCAA basketball championships events, starting in 2019, all taking place at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum.
Visit Fort Wayne and the Memorial Coliseum partnered with both local institutions to submit a total of 25 bids during the summer of 2016, for events taking place from 2019 to 2022. The NCAA announced championship event hosts for all sports in all three divisions for all four years.
"Fort Wayne has a proud tradition of basketball and hosting visitors, and these events will be excellent opportunities to expand our sports tourism resume," adds Dan O'Connell, President of Visit Fort Wayne.
For Division III, Manchester University was selected to host the men's basketball Division III Final Four in 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022. Dates are March 15-16 (2019); March 18-19 (2020); March 19-20 (2021); and March 20-21 (2022). The successful bid process concludes what will be a 23-year stay in Salem, Virginia, at the end of 2017-18.
The last time the Division III men's basketball Final Four wasn't in Salem was 1995, a year Manchester University fans remember well as the Spartans, under the guidance of former head coach Steve Alford, made their memorable run to the national championship game in Buffalo, N.Y. Visit Fort Wayne estimates that the economic impact for the local community will be $575,000 for each of the four years that the event was awarded to Fort Wayne.
Have a news tip? Email [email protected] or Call/Text 360-922-3092

e-Edition


e-edition

Sign up


for our email newsletters

Weekly Top Stories

Sign up to get our top stories delivered to your inbox every Sunday

Daily Updates & Breaking News Alerts

Sign up to get our daily updates and breaking news alerts delivered to your inbox daily

Latest Stories


Furious Warsaw Comeback Falls Short In Double OT
At the half, it seemed as if it was going to be a long night for the Warsaw boys basketball team. Their opponent, South Bend Riley, was dominating every facet of the game. But in typical Tiger fashion, Warsaw battled through the adversity and flipped the script in the second half. Playing well enough to force overtime twice, Warsaw came extremely close to finishing up the comeback and heading to semi-state, but instead, it was the Wildcats who made the biggest plays of the game late in a 77-71 win.

Manchester Wins First Regional Title In 31 Years
Manchester shot out of the chute in a manner befitting its glorious season — and in a manner befitting the end of a 31-year wait — Gavin Betten dazzled in a dominant manner befitting his Indiana All-Star candidacy, and tipped-over Tipton never fully recovered from running into those obstacles.

Lancers Win Winona Lake Bracket, Advance To NAIA Final Site
The March pilgrimage from Winona Lake to Kansas City is becoming an annual tradition for Grace’s men’s basketball team.

Triton Uses Three Point Barrage To Cruise To Regional Title
Having the opportunity to host 1A Regional 26 at the Trojan Trench on Saturday afternoon, the Triton boys basketball team made the most of it. Facing off against Lakewood Park Christian, the Trojans took the lead early on and never surrendered it, cruising to a 63-40 victory to advance to next week’s semi-state round.

Chip Shots: NAIA Basketball, For A Change
Looks like the three-week “real” NCAA Division I (D1) season starts this coming Tuesday.