NCAA Acrobatics & Tumbling has taken a significant step on the road to forty.
 
Acrobatics & Tumbling, a NCAA Emerging Sport for Women since 2020 at the NCAA Division I, II and III levels, is in the midst of a historic month, which will be capped with its 11^th National Championship event from April 28-30 in Eugene, Oregon. It will be the championships second appearance on the Oregon campus.
 
The NCATA community is celebrating a milestone achievement in its quest for NCAA Championship status, as Morgan State University – a NCAA Division I program from Baltimore, Maryland – became the 40^th Acrobatics & Tumbling program nationwide. Morgan State competes in the Mid-Eastern Athletics Conference (MEAC) and is the third historically black college or university to add the sports, joining Bluefield State College and West Virginia State University. Morgan State will compete at the collegiate level beginning in the spring of 2024.
 
The NCATA member list remained at 40 schools for less than two weeks, as Duquesne University, another Division I program from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania pushed the association’s membership to 41 schools this past Tuesday. Duquesne is currently a member of the Atlantic 10 Conference and plans to compete for the first time in the spring of 2025.
 
"The creation and growth of Acrobatics & Tumbling is truly a unique story - a new sport created by women, for women at the collegiate level,” said NCATA Executive Director Janell Cook. “The founding members of the NCATA came together with a vision for a new pathway.  Then worked together to provide new, safe, inclusive opportunities for gymnasts and cheerleaders to compete in their skill sets and to pursue their academic goals as varsity student-athletes.
 
“Our success has been such a collaborative effort at every level and through every step of the process, which has resulted in thousands of new collegiate opportunities. I'm ecstatic for all the women who have competed in Acrobatics & Tumbling and for every NCATA staff member and member administrator who has contributed to reaching this goal."
 
When Morgan State and Duquesne begin competing, the association will have six programs at the NCAA Division I level, as the new members will join Baylor University, the University of Oregon, Quinnipiac University and Presbyterian University.
 
"The achievement of reaching the threshold for NCAA championship sport status is an important milestone for the sport of Acrobatics & Tumbling and the numerous female student-athletes who have competed in the sport for over a decade,” said Mack B. Rhoades, IV
Vice President and Director of Intercollegiate Athletics at Baylor University.  “The pioneers of this sport, including our own coach Felecia Mulkey, are passionate and innovative leaders who care deeply about creating meaningful experiences and competition at the highest levels with our student-athletes.  I am extremely excited for the Acrobatics & Tumbling community and for our program.

“We are proud to be a founding member of the NCATA and to remain advocating for the continued future growth of Acrobatics & Tumbling across the nation."
 
Acrobatics & Tumbling arrived on college campuses in 2009 when six inaugural programs -including Azusa Pacific University, Baylor University, Fairmont State University, the University of Maryland, the University of Oregon and Quinnipiac University – started a movement that would result in the historic rise of a new varsity sport for women at the collegiate level.
 
The sports first national championship was held in April 2011 in Eugene, Oregon.
 
“As a founding member of the NCATA, we are excited that 40+ institutions are now sponsoring acrobatics and tumbling. The process to reach this milestone has been extensive, and we are looking forward to continued growth, including the eventual transition from an emerging sport to a fully sponsored NCAA sport,” said Rob Mullens, Director of Athletics at University of Oregon.
 
“Acrobatics & Tumbling has created many tremendous opportunities for young women throughout our country, and the impact of this sport on the landscape of college athletics is just beginning.”
 
In 2014 the NCATA membership reached double-digits when five school competed for the first time, including Adrian College, Alderson Broaddus University, Gannon University, King University and Hawaii Pacific University.
 
The membership grew into the 20’s with one school adding in 2015, 2016 and 2017 – setting the stage for four new programs to join in 2018 and five in 2019 – pushing the membership to 22 programs in just nine years.
 
The sport saw its first conference completion in 2019 when the Mountain East Conference (Bridgeport, W.Va.) hosted its first round-robin regular season schedule and capped the year with a four-team conference championship and event finals. The league crowned a regular season and tournament champion that year – which was won by inaugural A&T program Fairmont State.
 
Conference Carolinas (Greenville, S.C.) became the second NCAA Division II conference to host a championship event in the spring of 2021.  The conference championship also featured four teams and event finals, with Converse University winning the first-ever conference title.
 
“Fairmont State is proud to be a founding member of the NCATA and has fully supported the vision, development and growth of Acrobatics & Tumbling from the start. Through the years, the NCATA and its members have provided countless opportunities that have shaped the student-athlete experience for many female student-athletes,” said Kristi Kiefer, Professor and Associate Director of Athletics/SWA at Fairmont State University.
 
“Watching this sport grow from six original members to over forty NCAA teams and two NCAA DII conferences has been a dream come true. We are very grateful to NCATA leadership and our member institutions for paving the way to yet another milestone.”
 
Not long after reaching 30 members in 2020, Acrobatics & Tumbling was officially adopted as an NCAA Emerging Sport for Women on August 1, 2020. NCAA Division II and Division III approved emerging sport status on January 25, 2020 during the NCAA Convention and NCAA Division I followed suit by approving the emerging sport status on June 17, 2020.
 
During the 2022 season, NCATA programs competed on 32 campuses nationwide, with five new programs recruiting to compete in the spring of 2023. Erskine University has also announced a relaunch to their NCAA Division II program with plans to compete in the spring of 2024.
 
West Virginia State, Morgan State and Duquesne have each added a program during 2022, with each planning to compete by the 2024-25 season.
 
“The addition of Morgan State and Duquesne as the 40^th and 41st varsity programs is a special milestone for an emerging sport for women, and a testament to the hard work and dedication of the student-athletes who participate on our campuses, and the many head coaches and administrators who have championed Acrobatics and Tumbling over the years,” said Shanna (Kornachuk) Alexander, Sr. Associate Athletic Director for Compliance and Student Development at Quinnipiac University. “The continued growth of this sport is exciting, and with these additions the sport is one step closer on the journey to NCAA championship status.”
 
Acrobatics & Tumbling will be eligible to begin the legislative process for NCAA Championship status after 40 NCAA programs compete at specified NCAA sport sponsorship levels in a season of competition (18 participants, 6 competitions). Continued growth of new programs and support for current members to reach NCAA sport sponsorship levels will remain top priorities for the NCATA as the road to NCAA championship status continues. 
 
For today, the Acrobatics & Tumbling community celebrates the realization of years of work by NCATA leadership and member administrators and coaches. Their efforts, combined with the passion of every young woman across the country that has participated in pioneering this sport, has resulted in the remarkable feat of growing the sport from six national members to forty-one.
 
"The fact that 40+ colleges and universities now sponsor a sport that no one had heard of 15 years ago - and that has no current presence in high schools - is nothing short of amazing and is a testimony to hard work and enduring hope of the national leaders of Acrobatics & Tumbling,” said Gary Pine, Director of Athletics at Azusa Pacific University.
 
“The NCAA's recognition of Acrobatics & Tumbling as an emerging sport certainly put wind in the sails for those efforts to see this sport grow.  The future is extremely bright for A&T and I expect to witness its continued growth and acceptance as a championship sport for women."