On Monday, July 1, the Charlotte 49ers will complete the move to Conference USA, a league they were members for 10 years (from 1995-96 through 2004-05). The 49ers will bid farewell to the Atlantic 10 Conference, of which they were member for eight years, from 2005-06 through 2012-13.
During their Atlantic 10 membership, Charlotte 49ers put up some outstanding numbers:
- 50 Atlantic 10 Conference Championships
- 18 NCAA team trips and another 10 NIT appearances
- 40 NCAA individual appearances
- 45 Atlantic 10 Players of the Year
- 29 Atlantic 10 Individual Sport Student-Athletes of the Year
- 7 Atlantic 10 Male or Female Scholar-Athletes of the Year
To put it in perspective, in the 49ers’ eight years in the league, the conference, which included up to 16 teams, awarded 204 league championships in sports Charlotte sponsors. Charlotte won 25 percent, more than any other school in the league.
The A-10 awarded 230 Player of the Year Awards during Charlotte’s membership; the 49ers won 20 percent of those, more than any other school in the league.
In the six years, individual sport student-athletes of the year were awarded, 94 honors were given. Charlotte won more than 31 percent, a greater percentage than any other school in the league.
In the six years the A-10 awarded a Male and Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year, 12 such individuals earned honors. Seven were 49ers. No other school had more than two.
The 49ers won an average of six league titles per year, including a high of eight in 2007-08 when baseball and women’s soccer swept regular-season and tournament titles and in 2008-09 when women’s soccer enjoyed another sweep and women’s basketball claimed the tournament title in Halton Arena. In 2005-06 and in 2008-09, a record seven different 49ers programs won league titles.
Men’s golf, women’s indoor track and women’s outdoor track each won seven of a possible eight league titles during the 49ers stay in the A-10. In fact, after just eight years in the league, the 49ers own conference records for most league titles in each of those sports. The 49ers men’s and women’s indoor and outdoor track and field programs combined to win 23 of a possible 32 league championships.
Overall, 11 different 49ers programs won an A-10 league title; 13 sports boasted an A-10 Player of the Year, and 11 had a sport Student-Athlete of the Year.
Along the way, Charlotte reached the NCAA National Championship game in men’s soccer in 2011 and boasted back-to-back top 10 finishes at the NCAA Golf Championships, including a third-place finish in 2007. Additional NCAA tournament victories, top 25 wins and a slew of all-America performances vaulted the 49ers program to the top of the league.
Charlotte battled with the likes of Xavier and Dayton, Richmond and George Washington, Rhode Island and Massachusetts, Fordham and St. Bonaventure, Temple and La Salle, Saint Joseph’s and Saint Louis and ultimately VCU and Butler.
On Sunday, June 30, the 49ers’ eight-year membership in the Atlantic 10 Conference ends. For Charlotte, it was an era marked by excellence. The Charlotte 49ers created a video retrospective about its A-10 era.