Waldorf Soccer Teams Join GPAC for 2023 and Beyond

The Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) announced Wednesday that it has admitted Waldorf University as an associate member in Men's Soccer and Women's Soccer, effective for the Fall 2023 soccer season.

Waldorf replaces the departing Presentation College, which was an associate member through the 2022 season.  Presentation recently announced that it will cease all operations in the summer of 2023.  Waldorf's membership allows for the conference to continue with 13 soccer teams and minimize scheduling difficulties consequential to Presentation's closure.

"We are delighted to have this opportunity to join the GPAC for Men's and Women's Soccer," said Waldorf University Director of Athletics Chad Gassman.  "Our soccer programs needed a traditional geographic conference to call home, and the GPAC had need for a new member.  There is tremendous benefit to everyone involved, and that is why this deal got done.  I sincerely thank both the GPAC Commissioner, Corey Westra, and our president, Dr. Robert Alsop, for their tremendous leadership and cooperation on this matter."

Waldorf had spent the last six seasons as part of the Continental Athletic Conference (CAC), a nationwide federation of independent institutions based out of Lawrenceville, Georgia.  As a GPAC member, Waldorf will be able to travel by bus to all campuses in the league.  While Waldorf's men's and women's teams played four league contests apiece in 2022, GPAC members played 12 league contests each.

Despite the move in soccer, Waldorf University remains a full member of the North Star Athletic Association (NSAA) in all 14 sports sponsored by the conference. 

"While it is difficult to lose a full member, we are actively working on solutions for the North Star moving forward," Gassman said.  "North Star Commissioner Roger Ternes and I are in regular communication, and we had his full support in taking this action for our soccer teams." 

Gassman also expressed gratitude to the Continental Athletic Conference for its welcoming of the Waldorf soccer programs during its transitional seasons.  "I thank Commissioner Ted Breidenthal for welcoming our programs for these last six years.  We wish the CAC and its membership the best moving forward."

Waldorf will begin its inaugural season in the GPAC this August.