CASTLETON, Vt. (WCAX) – After nine years in the Little East, Castleton is moving the majority of its athletic programs to the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference. 20 of the 26 Spartans sports programs will move ahead of the 2027-28 school year. Castleton previously played one football season in the MASCAC before joining the New Jersey Athletic Conference ahead of the 2025 season. The MASCAC currently includes seven state universities from Massachusetts. Castleton replaces the one private member, Anna Maria College, as it shut down permanently at the end of this school year. There are a few hurdles Castleton will have to figure out: while four of the six sports not joining the MASCAC donât participate in a traditional collegiate conference, the tennis programs will likely need to find affiliate memberships to build schedules. And Castleton will have to schedule rival Norwich as part of its nonconference hockey slate…but athletic director Tim Barrett says itâs the right move for the Spartans, especially when it comes to football. âWeâve had ongoing conversations for the last couple of years regarding the possibilities within the MASCAC,â Barrett said. âObviously, we had the one year relationship for football in the MASCAC, we enjoyed our time there, we felt at that point we were a natural fit for that conference. So weâre looking forward to it, weâre also looking forward to the next seasons within the Little East Conference, but I do think this was the right move at the right time.âRead More
