Demorest, GA -- Piedmont College President Dr. Ray Cleere and the Piedmont College Board of Trustees has announced that the college will add women's lacrosse as a varsity sport beginning in the 2011-12 school year. The initial year will be used to lay the program's foundation with its recruiting base and scheduling with the goal of intercollegiate competition beginning in the spring of 2013.

“Our public announcement regarding adding women's lacrosse to our intercollegiate sport offerings is timed to alert potential recruits and head coach aspirants about our plans for bringing women's lacrosse to Piedmont,” said John Dzik, PC's Director of Athletics. “We hope to create interest for both qualified student-athletes and an experienced head coach with this formal announcement.”

According to the latest participation survey by U.S. Lacrosse, the sport's governing body, lacrosse is the fastest-growing high school sport for girls over the last 10 years and the second-fastest growing sport among boys. At the collegiate level, men's lacrosse has been the fastest-growing sport over the past decade while women's lacrosse has been the second-fastest-growing sport. Currently in NCAA Division III, there are close to 200 women's lacrosse programs across the nation.

The advent of the women's lacrosse program comes less than a year after it was announced that Piedmont would add men's lacrosse to its list of intercollegiate athletic offerings. After making the announcement in March of 2010 that the new program would be added, standout high school coach Peter Manderano was tabbed as the first leader of the Piedmont men's lacrosse program bringing a slew of Georgia high school playoff appearances and a 2006 state title with him to the collegiate level.

Piedmont becomes just the fifth NCAA Division III school in the state of Georgia and the third in the Great South Athletic Conference to formally add women's lacrosse as an intercollegiate sport. The Lady Lions will join Agnes Scott College and LaGrange College as GSAC member schools who will offer women's lacrosse while Huntingdon College is expected to add the sport in 2013.

The college will shortly begin conducting a national search for a head coach to lead the program and expects to make an appointment to the position by the end of the current spring semester. The new coach will be charged with adding assistant coaches and beginning a comprehensive recruiting program for the 2011-2012 school year with the anticipated inaugural season slated for the 2013 spring semester.

With the addition of men's lacrosse, Piedmont has already begun the necessary expansion of facilities and support services to accommodate both the new men's and women's lacrosse programs. A new turf playing facility was added in the fall of 2010 to the Walker Athletic Complex complete with markings for both men's and women's lacrosse to provide a first-class experience for student-athletes while additional seating was also constructed to enhance the spectator's experience at the facility.

Athletic office space has been expanded as has the current athletic training staff with the addition of assistant athletic trainers Tim Miesmer and Kristi Castellaw who both came to Piedmont in the fall of 2010. Renovation of existing locker rooms is also a part of the start-up process for the new athletic program.

“We are all excited to expand our women's athletic program offerings with the addition of lacrosse,” stated Dzik. “Considering the rapid growth of the sport nationwide and in Georgia, the decision by our administration to implement the program at Piedmont is well timed.”

The comments of Piedmont's athletic director could not be more spot on as the sport of lacrosse has seen unprecedented growth in the state of Georgia. According to the latest U.S. Lacrosse survey, close to 10,000 players from the youth up to the adult level are playing lacrosse in the Peach State, a mark second only in the Southeast to the lacrosse-heavy state of Virginia.

Women's lacrosse will bring Piedmont's list of intercollegiate sport offerings to 15 total including eight on the women's side and seven on the men's side. As a charter member of the Great South Athletic Conference, Piedmont College is a member of the NCAA conducting its athletic program in Division III.