The Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA) is an NCAA Division I collegiate wrestling conference. It held its first championship tournament in 1905,[1] making it the oldest wrestling conference in the NCAA. The EIWA's charter members were Columbia, Penn, Princeton, and Yale.[2] Thirty-two different schools have been members of the EIWA during its history,[3] all schools from the Eastern United States. Its current members are schools in the Northeast whose main conferences do not sponsor wrestling, including the Patriot League, America East Conference, Northeast Conference, and Coastal Athletic Association. Franklin & Marshall is the only Division III school that competes in Division I wrestling.

Current members

The EIWA currently has 11 members:[4]

Recent success and developments

At the 2011 NCAA Wrestling Championship, three EIWA teams placed in the top 10: Cornell placed 2nd, American University was 5th, and Lehigh finished 8th.[5] In 2012, Cornell finished 4th and Lehigh 8th; Cornell was also 5th in 2013 and 7th in 2014.[6]

In the same period, the EIWA had forty-four All-Americans;[7] also, Kyle Dake of Cornell was awarded the Dan Hodge Trophy as national wrestler of the year[8] and was named most outstanding wrestler of the NCAA tournament[9] after becoming the first NCAA wrestler ever to win four national championships in four different weight classes in consecutive years.[10]

In 2013, the EIWA absorbed Boston University, Hofstra, Drexel, and Binghamton after the Colonial Athletic Association ceased sponsorship of wrestling, making an 18-team conference for the 2013–14 season.[11] The EIWA was reduced to 16 in 2014-15 with the departure of Rutgers to the Big Ten Conference[12] and discontinuation of the BU program.[13]

The most recent change in the EIWA membership was announced in April 2019. Long Island University announced that the wrestling team that had represented its Post campus in Division II would join the EIWA once the merger of the athletic programs of its Brooklyn and Post campuses took effect in July 2019. The renamed LIU Sharks joined NEC rival Sacred Heart, bringing the conference to seventeen members.

For the 2020–21 season, the EIWA had ten schools competing, as the six Ivy League schools and the Centennial Conference (which includes Franklin & Marshall) did not hold winter sports due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

On December 19, 2023, the six Ivy League members announced that they were leaving the EIWA to compete exclusively under the Ivy League banner starting in the 2024–25 season.[14]

Membership timeline

Former EIWA schools

*School dropped the program
† Moved program to the Ivy League

League champions

Year Host Champion Year Host Champion Year Host Champion Year Host Champion
1905 Pennsylvania Yale 1942 Penn State Penn State 1980 Lehigh Lehigh 2019 Binghamton Lehigh
1906 Columbia Yale 1943 Pennsylvania Navy 1981 Princeton Syracuse 2020 Lehigh Lehigh
1907 Princeton Yale 1944 Lehigh Navy 1982 Lehigh Navy 2021 None Lehigh
1908 Pennsylvania Yale 1945 Lehigh Navy 1983 Lehigh Lehigh 2022 Cornell Cornell
1909 Yale Yale 1946 Lehigh Navy 1984 Navy Navy 2023 Pennsylvania Cornell
1910 Pennsylvania Cornell 1947 Yale Lehigh 1985 Franklin & Marshall Lehigh 2024 Bucknell Cornell
1911 Princeton Princeton 1948 Lehigh Lehigh 1986 Lehigh Navy
1912 Columbia Cornell 1949 Cornell Syracuse 1987 Princeton Army
1913 Cornell Cornell 1950 Princeton Syracuse 1988 Syracuse Lehigh
1914 Pennsylvania Cornell 1951 Penn State Penn State 1989 Lehigh Syracuse
1915 Lehigh Cornell 1952 Lehigh Penn State 1990 Wilkes Navy
1916 Princeton Cornell 1953 Princeton Penn State 1991 Lehigh Syracuse
1917 Cornell Cornell 1954 Cornell Pittsburgh 1992 Pennsylvania Cornell
1918 Columbia Penn State 1955 Penn State Pittsburgh 1993 Lehigh Cornell
1919 Penn State Penn State 1956 Lehigh Pittsburgh 1994 Cornell Syracuse
1920 Pennsylvania Penn State 1957 Penn State Penn State 1995 Navy Lehigh
1921 Princeton Penn State 1958 Pittsburgh Cornell 1996 Syracuse Pennsylvania
1922 Lehigh Cornell 1959 Cornell Lehigh 1997 Pennsylvania Pennsylvania
1923 Cornell Cornell 1960* Princeton Penn State 1998 Lehigh Pennsylvania
1924 Yale Penn State Pittsburgh 1999 Army Pennsylvania
1925 Columbia Penn State 1961 Lehigh Lehigh 2000 Navy Lehigh
1926 Penn State Cornell 1962 Penn State Lehigh 2001 Pennsylvania Harvard
1927* Pennsylvania Lehigh 1963 Navy Syracuse 2002 Lehigh Lehigh
Yale 1964 Franklin & Marshall Lehigh 2003 Cornell Lehigh
1928 Princeton Lehigh 1965 Cornell Syracuse 2004 Pennsylvania Lehigh
1929 Lehigh Lehigh 1966 Pittsburgh Lehigh 2005 Navy Lehigh
1930 Cornell Cornell 1967 Pennsylvania Lehigh 2006 Lehigh Lehigh
1931 Yale Lehigh 1968 Pittsburgh Navy 2007 East Stroudsburg Cornell
1932 Syracuse Lehigh 1969 Princeton Navy 2008 Franklin & Marshall Cornell
1933 Columbia Lehigh 1970 Penn State Navy 2009 Pennsylvania Cornell
1934 Penn State Lehigh 1971 Navy Penn State 2010 Lehigh Cornell
1935 Pennsylvania Lehigh 1972 Temple Navy 2011 Bucknell Cornell
1936 Princeton Penn State 1973 Pittsburgh Penn State 2012 Princeton Cornell
1937 Lehigh Penn State 1974 Navy Navy 2013 Rutgers Cornell
1938 Cornell Lehigh 1975 Navy Lehigh 2014 Pennsylvania Cornell
1939 Yale Lehigh 1976 Franklin & Marshall Lehigh 2015 Lehigh Cornell
1940 Syracuse Lehigh 1977 Syracuse Lehigh 2016 Princeton Cornell
1941* Columbia Princeton 1978 Pennsylvania Princeton 2017 Bucknell Cornell
Yale 1979 Princeton Lehigh 2018 Hofstra Lehigh

* Tie for team title

Total championships

Team Championships
Lehigh 38
Cornell 27
Penn State 16
Navy 13
Syracuse 8
Yale 7
Pennsylvania 4
Pittsburgh 4
Princeton 3
Army 1
Harvard 1

See also

Notes

  1. ^ www.wrestlingstats.com http://www.wrestlingstats.com/eiwa/pdf/EIWA%20Tournament%20Summary.pdf. Retrieved January 18, 2015. ((cite web)): Missing or empty |title= (help)[title missing]
  2. ^ "Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association". eiwawrestling.org. Retrieved January 18, 2015.
  3. ^ For members up to 2011, see http://www.wrestlingstats.com/eiwa/pdf/EIWA%20Team%20Summary.pdf; for 2012 members, see http://www.goprincetontigers.com/fls/10600/pdf/Final_2012_EIWA_Brackets.pdf?DB_OEM_ID=10600; for 2013 members, see http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/navy/sports/m-wrestl/auto_pdf/2012-13/box_score/stats_20130308aaa.pdf Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine; for 2014 members, see http://openliveresults.escapesports.com/2014-OPEN-Standalone-2014_EIWA-1394231857_LiveTeamScores.htm Archived 2015-01-19 at the Wayback Machine. All retrieved January 18, 2015.
  4. ^ See the dropdown list under "Member Schools" at http://eiwawrestling.org/landing/index. Retrieved January 18, 2015.
  5. ^ intermatwrestle.com https://web.archive.org/web/20160108194726/http://intermatwrestle.com/Files/pdf/10-11/ncaadivisionichampionships.pdf. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 8, 2016. Retrieved January 18, 2015. ((cite web)): Missing or empty |title= (help)[title missing]
  6. ^ See "Division I Wrestling--All-time Team Results" in Wrestling: Division I, p. 20, at http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/wrestling_champs_records/2014-15/DI.pdf. Retrieved January 18, 2015.
  7. ^ See "NCAA Results Archive" at http://d1collegewrestling.net/NCAAResults_Archive.html. Retrieved January 18, 2015.
  8. ^ "Kyle Dake wins 2013 Dan Hodge Trophy". www.win-magazine.com. 29 March 2013. Retrieved January 18, 2015.
  9. ^ See "Most Outstanding Wrestler Award" in Wrestling: Division I, p. 7, at http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/wrestling_champs_records/2014-15/DI.pdf. Retrieved January 18, 2015.
  10. ^ "Cornell Wrestler Kyle Dake Makes History with Fourth Straight NCAA Title". cornellsun.com. 24 March 2013. Retrieved January 18, 2015.
  11. ^ "EIWA adds teams; new regional possible". www.win-magazine.com. 2 May 2013. Retrieved January 18, 2015.
  12. ^ "Rutgers wrestling ready for challenge of Big Ten competition". www.dailyrecord.com. Retrieved January 18, 2015.
  13. ^ "Boston U. Goes out fighting in demise of wrestling". www.usatoday.com. Retrieved January 18, 2015.
  14. ^ "Ivy League To Launch Wrestling Tournament Starting in 2025". Ivy League. 19 December 2023. Retrieved December 19, 2023.

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