Already D-I in hockey, Massachusetts-Lowell moves rest of athletics to highest level

Massachusetts-Lowell’s announced Thursday that its athletic teams will move up to Division I, joining the America East Conference on July 1.

The school’s hockey program already competes in D-I as part of Hockey East.

With the move to America East, UML will join Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont, already fellow members of Hockey East.

“UMass Lowell student-athletes are not only known for their performance on the field, court and ice, but also in the classroom,” said UML athletic director Dana Skinner in a statement. “Our current only Division I sport, men’s ice hockey, has the highest average GPA of all of our men’s teams, regularly receiving honors from their league and other organizations. By moving all of our teams to the America East Conference, UMass Lowell will join our peers not only in athletics, but also in academics and research.”

Lowell has been a member of NCAA Division II since 1975 and a member of the Northeast-10 Conference since 2000.