SAN DIEGO – The Southwestern Lacrosse Conference (SLC), which sponsors teams in Southern California, Nevada and Arizona, has announced a pair of changes to its divisions for the 2018 season.

Concordia-Irvine, which won the 2017 MCLA Division National Championships powered by Under Armour, will play in Division I next spring, while Loyola-Marymount will transition to Division II for the 2018 campaign.

“This is a good fit for both programs right now,” said SLC president Matt Holman. “Concordia has proven they can play with anyone in the MCLA at either level, so the move should be a smooth one. Loyola-Marymount’s move to Division II will allow it to rebuild a strong foundation and offer a better lacrosse experience for its program members.”

The two schools will essentially trade places, with Concordia-Irvine moving into the SLC North division with Chapman, Claremont, UC Santa Barbara, UCLA and USC.

Loyola-Marymount will be slotted in the SLC South in Division II, where they will join Cal State Long Beach, Cal State San Marcos, San Diego, UC Irvine and UC San Diego.

“The experience is going to make our players and our program stronger in the long run,” said Concordia-Irvine coach Ryan Brent. “We have built a really strong program here over the last four years and as long as we continue that trajectory with recruiting, retention and support, I'm sure our program will be successful at the higher level.”

2018 Southwestern Lacrosse Conference
Divisional Structure

Division I
North
Chapman
Claremont
Concordia-Irvine
UC Santa Barbara
UCLA
USC

South
Arizona
Arizona State
Grand Canyon
San Diego State
UNLV

Division II
North
Biola
Cal State Channel Islands
Cal State Fullerton
Marymount
Northern Arizona
Occidental

South
Cal State Long Beach
Cal State San Marcos
Loyola-Marymount
San Diego
UC Irvine
UC San Diego