EIAC
Basketball Tournament Returns to Fayetteville
January 28, 2003
The 2003 Eastern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (EIAC)
Annual Men's and Women's Basketball Tournament will be held
February 28 through March 2 (Friday - Sunday) in Fayetteville,
North Carolina at the Cumberland County Coliseum Complex-Arena.
The facility, located at 1960 Coliseum Drive with a basketball
seating capacity of 4,200, is serving as the tournament backdrop
for the second straight season and has a year remaining on the
contract. EIAC Commissioner Ken Free said Fayetteville was supportive
during the bidding process and he felt the city wanted the event.
He also stated that although four of the six member institutions
are located in the state of South Carolina, the city of Fayetteville
is relatively central for the conference.
EIAC Membership
The EIAC is comprised of six institutions of higher learning
and the conference is a member of the National Association of
Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). The EIAC schools are Allen
University (Columbia, SC), Barber-Scotia College (Concord, NC),
Claflin University (Orangeburg, SC), Edward Waters College (Jacksonville,
FL), Morris College (Sumter, SC) and Voorhees College (Denmark,
SC).
Tickets
Adult tickets for the 2003 EIAC Basketball Tournament are $10.00
for the Friday, February 28 session, $15.00 for Saturday, March
1 and $15.00 for championship Sunday, March 2. Purchasers can
take advantage of an "Early Bird Special" book of
tickets for $35.00 if bought before February 25.
Student tickets are $5.00 per session but can be purchased in
book form for $15.00.
There is also a patriotic discount for military personnel at
$7.50 per day. The EIAC is especially proud to make this offer
and urges military attendance. Fort Bragg, one of the largest
and most noted military bases in America, and Pope Air Force
Base are located in the Fayetteville area.
Tickets are on sale and can be purchased at all member institutions
and the Cumberland County Coliseum Complex-Arena.
Game Format And Times
The EIAC Basketball Tournament is a three-day, single elimination
event for both the men's and women's teams. The regular season
champions and runner-ups will receive opening round byes. In
the opening round quarterfinals on Friday, February 28, there
will be a 2:00pm women's game and a 4:00pm men's game followed
by women's and men's contests at 6:00pm and 8:00pm respectively.
On Saturday (March 1), women play at 12:00 noon and 4:00pm,
while the men play at 2:00pm and 6:00pm.
In the championship matches on Sunday (March 2), the women tip
off at 3:00pm and the men tangle at 5:30pm.
Both tournament champions earn the Conference's automatic berth
to the NAIA championships. Edward Waters won both EIAC crowns
in 2002.
Tournament Activities, Sponsor And Headquarters
Activities surrounding the EIAC Basketball Tournament include
the Tip Off Banquet Thursday night, February 27, the Commissioner's
Hospitality on Friday night, High School Day and the Cheerleader
Contest.
The official sponsor of the EIAC Basketball Tournament is Coca-Cola,
a champion and friend to the conference's mission.
The Holiday Inn/I-95 will serve as hotel headquarters for the
EIAC Basketball Tournament. There is a specially discounted
rate governed by a cutoff date for tournament officials and
patrons. For reservations and more information, contact the
sales office at 910-323-1600.
Tournament Week Notes
"One of the EIAC's battle cries is 'small college basketball
at its best', but actually the tournament is the largest Black
sports event in Fayetteville," offered Free. "We understand
our event is on the same weekend as the hugely successful CIAA
Tournament, but no matter which week we chose it would have
been on another conference's dates, whether it be the MEAC or
the ACC. In respect to the CIAA which is in nearby Raleigh,
our championships are on Sunday and we hope to draw some still
basketball-hungry CIAA fans that day."
