Wikipedia

North Star Athletic Association

The North Star Athletic Association (NSAA) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) that began play in the 2013–14 school year.[1] The conference currently has six full member institutions in Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. On December 28, 2023, the conference announced it will disband following the 2024–25 school year.[2]

North Star Athletic Association
AssociationNAIA
Founded2013
CommissionerRoger Ternes
Sports fielded
  • 18
    • men's: 9
    • women's: 9
No. of teams6
HeadquartersJamestown, North Dakota
Region
Official websitewww.playnorthstar.com
Locations
Location of teams in {{{title}}}

History

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North Star Athletic Association
 
 
200km
125miles
 
Dickinson State
 
Bellevue
 
Dakota State
 
Mayville State
 
Valley City State
 
Jamestown
Location of NSAA members:   current

Chronological timeline

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  • 2013 – The North Star Athletic Association (NSAA) was founded. Charter members included Dakota State University, the University of Jamestown, Mayville State University, Presentation College and Valley City State University, beginning the 2013–14 academic year.
  • 2014 – Dickinson State University joined the NSAA in the 2014–15 academic year.
  • 2014 – Waldorf University joined the NSAA as an affiliate member for football in the 2014 fall season (2014–15 academic year).
  • 2015 – Bellevue University and Viterbo University joined the NSAA (along with Waldorf upgrading to join for all sports) in the 2015–16 academic year.
  • 2015 – The University of Winnipeg joined the NSAA as an affiliate member for baseball in the 2016 spring season (2015–16 academic year).
  • 2017 – Winnipeg left the NSAA as an affiliate member for baseball as the school dropped the sport after the 2017 spring season (2016–17 academic year).
  • 2018 – Jamestown left the NSAA to join the Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) after the 2017–18 academic year.
  • 2021 – Iowa Wesleyan University joined the NSAA as an affiliate member for football, men's track and field, and women's track and field in the 2021–22 academic year.
  • 2023 – Presentation (S.D.) left the NSAA as the school closed after the 2022–23 academic year.[3]
  • 2023 – Iowa Wesleyan left the NSAA as an affiliate member as the school closed after the 2022–23 academic year.[4]
  • 2024 – Waldorf left the NSAA to join the GPAC after the 2023–24 academic year.[5]
  • 2024 – Viterbo left the NSAA to join the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) after the 2023–24 academic year.[6]
  • 2024 – Jamestown rejoined the NSAA for the 2024–25 academic year.[7]
  • 2025 – The NSAA will cease operations as an athletic conference after the 2024–25 academic year; as many schools left to join their respective new home primary conferences beginning the 2025–26 academic year:[2] Jamestown will transition to the NCAA Division II ranks and join the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC), while the remaining five schools (Bellevue, Dakota State, Mayville State and Valley City State; with Dickinson State rejoining) will join the Frontier Conference.[8][9][10]

Member schools

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Current members

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The NSAA currently has six full members, two of which are private schools:

Institution Location Founded Affiliation Enrollment Nickname Joined[a] Colors
Bellevue University[b] Bellevue, Nebraska 1966 Nonsectarian 8,300 Bruins 2015    
Dakota State University[b] Madison, South Dakota 1881 Public 3,307 Trojans 2013      
Dickinson State University[b] Dickinson, North Dakota 1918 Public 1,800 Blue Hawks 2014    
University of Jamestown[c] Jamestown, North Dakota 1883 Presbyterian
(PCUSA) 		1,500 Jimmies 2013[d];
2024 		   
Mayville State University[b] Mayville, North Dakota 1889 Public 1,130 Comets 2013    
Valley City State University[b] Valley City, North Dakota 1890 Public 1,623 Vikings 2013    
Notes
  1. ^ Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.
  2. ^ a b c d e Bellevue, Dakota State, Dickinson State, Mayville State, and Valley City State will join the Frontier Conference upon dissolution of the NSAA after the 2024–25 academic year.[9][10]
  3. ^ Jamestown will transition to the NCAA Division II ranks and join the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) upon the dissolution of the NSAA after the 2024-25 academic year.[8]
  4. ^ Jamestown competed as a full member of the NSAA from 2013–14 to 2017–18.


Former members

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The NSAA had three former full members, all of which were private schools:

Institution Location Founded Affiliation Nickname Joined[a] Left[b] Subsequent
conference 		Current
conference
Presentation College Aberdeen, South Dakota 1922 Catholic
(P.B.V.M.) 		Saints 2013 2023 Closed in 2023
Viterbo University La Crosse, Wisconsin 1923 Catholic
(Franciscan) 		V-Hawks 2015 2024 Chicagoland (CCAC)
(2024–present)
Waldorf University Forest City, Iowa 1903 For-profit[c] Warriors 2015[d] 2024 Great Plains (GPAC)
(2024–present)
Notes
  1. ^ Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.
  2. ^ Represents the calendar year when spring sports competition end.
  3. ^ Formerly affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) until 2010.
  4. ^ Waldorf competed in the NSAA as an affiliate member for football only during the 2014 fall season (2014–15 school year); before becoming a full member, effective the 2015–16 school year.

Former affiliate members

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The NSAA had three former affiliate members, one was a public school and the other two were private:

Institution Location Founded Affiliation Nickname Joined[a] Left[b] NSAA
sport 		Current
primary
conference 		Conference
in former
NSAA sport
Iowa Wesleyan University[4] Mount Pleasant, Iowa 1842 United Methodist Tigers 2021 2023 football,
men's track & field,
women's track & field 		Closed in 2023
University of Winnipeg[11] Winnipeg, Manitoba 1871 Public Wesmen 2015 2017 baseball Canada West (CWUAA)[c] dropped program
Waldorf University Forest City, Iowa 1903 For-profit Warriors 2014 2015[d] football Great Plains (GPAC)
Notes
  1. ^ Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.
  2. ^ Represents the calendar year when spring sports competition end.
  3. ^ Currently an U Sports (formerly the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS)) athletic conference.
  4. ^ Waldorf became a full member of the NSAA from 2015–16 to 2023–24.

Membership timeline

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Iowa Wesleyan UniversityUniversity of WinnipegChicagoland Collegiate Athletic ConferenceViterbo UniversityFrontier ConferenceBellevue UniversityGreat Plains Athletic ConferenceWaldorf UniversityFrontier ConferenceDickinson State UniversityFrontier ConferenceValley City State UniversityPresentation College, South DakotaFrontier ConferenceMayville State UniversityNorthern Sun Intercollegiate ConferenceGreat Plains Athletic ConferenceUniversity of JamestownFrontier ConferenceDakota State University

 Full member (all sports)   Full member (non-football)   Associate member (football-only)   Associate member (other) 

Conference sports

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The North Star Athletic Association currently fields 18 sports (9 men's and 9 women's):

Conference sports
Sport Men's Women's
Baseball  Y
Basketball  Y  Y
Cross Country  Y  Y
Football  Y
Golf  Y  Y
Softball  Y
Track & Field - Indoor  Y  Y
Track & Field - Outdoor  Y  Y
Volleyball  Y

Men's sports

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Men's sponsored sports by school
School Baseball Basketball Cross
country 		Football Golf Track
& field
(indoor)		 Track
& field
(outdoor)		 Total NSAA
Sports
Bellevue  Y  Y  Y  N  Y  Y  Y 6
Dakota State  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y 7
Dickinson State  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y 7
Jamestown  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y 7
Mayville State  Y  Y  N  Y  Y  N  N 4
Valley City State  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y 7
Totals 7 7 6 6 7 6 6 38

Men's varsity sports not sponsored by the North Star Athletic Association which are played by NSAA schools

School Hockey Soccer Volleyball Wrestling
Bellevue — CAC — —
Dickinson State — — — Heart of America
Jamestown ACHA TBD TBD TBD

Women's sports

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Women's sponsored sports by school
School Basketball Cross
country		 Golf Softball Track
& field
(indoor)		 Track
& field
(outdoor) 		Volleyball Total NSAA
Sports
Bellevue  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y 7
Dakota State  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y 7
Dickinson State  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y 7
Jamestown  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y 7
Mayville State  Y  N  Y  Y  N  N  Y 4
Valley City State  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y 7
Totals 7 6 7 7 6 6 7 46

Women's varsity sports not sponsored by the North Star Athletic Association which are played by NSAA schools

School Hockey Soccer Swimming Wrestling
Bellevue — CAC — —
Dickinson State — — — Heart of America
Jamestown ACHA TBD KCAC

Conference Championships

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Football

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NSAA champions by year
Year School Record
2013 Valley City State
Jamestown 		3-1
2014 Valley City State 6-0
2015 Dickinson State 5-1
2016 Dickinson State 6-0
2017 Dickinson State 8-0
2018 Dickinson State 6-1
2019 Dickinson State 6-1
2020 Dickinson State 9-0
2021 Dickinson State 8-0
2022 Dickinson State 6-0

Volleyball

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NSAA regular season and tournament champions by year
Year Regular Season Tournament
2013 Jamestown
2014 Jamestown
2015 Viterbo
2016 Viterbo
2017 Viterbo
2018 vacated[a]
2019 Viterbo
2020 Bellevue Viterbo
2021 Viterbo
2022 Bellevue
Viterbo 		Viterbo
  1. ^ Viterbo was stripped of the 2018 volleyball regular season and tournament championships after a player was found to be ineligible.[12]

Men's basketball

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NSAA regular season and tournament champions by year
Year Regular Season Tournament
2013-14 Jamestown
2014-15 Dakota State
Jamestown 		Dakota State
2015-16 Dakota State
2016-17 Bellevue
Dickinson State
Jamestown 		Bellevue
2017-18 Bellevue Mayville State
2018-19 Bellevue
Presentation 		Mayville State
2019-20 Bellevue Mayville State
2020-21 Mayville State Bellevue
2021-22 Bellevue
Viterbo 		Bellevue
2022-23 Mayville State

Women's basketball

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NSAA regular season and tournament champions by year
Year Regular Season Tournament
2013-14 Jamestown
Mayville State 		Mayville State
2014-15 Jamestown
2015-16 Jamestown
2016-17 Jamestown
2017-18 Jamestown Valley City State
2018-19 Bellevue
Mayville State 		Bellevue
2019-20 Bellevue
Mayville State 		Mayville State
2020-21 Dakota State
2021-22 Dakota State
2022-23 Dakota State Mayville State

Baseball

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NSAA regular season and tournament champions by year
Year Regular Season Tournament
2014 Jamestown
2015 Jamestown
Mayville State 		Mayville State
2016 Bellevue
2017 Bellevue Mayville State
2018 Mayville State Bellevue
2019 Bellevue
2020 none[c]
2021 Bellevue Mayville State
2022 Bellevue
2023 Bellevue
  1. ^ Dickinson State was a member of the Frontier Conference, which does not sponsor baseball, in 2014. The 2014 NSAA tournament, known that year as the NSAA/Frontier Tournament, included Dickinson State. Regular-season games against Dickinson State in 2014, are not counted as conference games and are excluded from the teams' regular-season records, since Dickinson State was not an NSAA member. However, 2014 conference tournament games involving Dickinson State are counted as tournament wins and losses, since Dickinson State was a tournament participant that year.
  2. ^ Dickinson State dropped their baseball program after the 2017-18 season, and then reinstated it for the 2020-21 season.
  3. ^ The 2020 season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Softball

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NSAA regular season and tournament champions by year
Year Regular Season Tournament
2014 Valley City State Dickinson State[e]
2015 Jamestown Dickinson State
2016 Dickinson State
2017 Bellevue Jamestown
2018 Jamestown Dickinson State
2019 Valley City State
2020 none[f]
2021 Valley City State Dickinson State
2022 Bellevue Valley City State
2023 Bellevue Valley City State
  1. ^ Total does not include 2014 NSAA/Frontier Tournament Championship when they were a member of the Frontier Conference.
  2. ^ Dickinson State and Great Falls were members of the Frontier Conference, which does not sponsor softball, in 2014. The NSAA tournament, known that year as the NSAA/Frontier Tournament, included Dickinson State and Great Falls. Regular-season games against those two clubs in 2014, are not counted as conference games and are excluded from the teams' regular-season records, since they were not NSAA members. However, 2014 conference tournament games involving either Dickinson State or Great Falls are included as tournament wins and losses, since both teams were tournament participants that year.
  3. ^ Great Falls was never a member of the NSAA, but played in the 2014 NSAA/Frontier Tournament, since the Frontier does not sponsor softball. Their record in that tournament is included here.
  4. ^ University of Great Falls was renamed University of Providence in 2017-18.
  5. ^ Dickinson State won the 2014 NSAA/Frontier Tournament as a member of the Frontier Conference. Dakota State finished the best out of all NSAA teams in the 2014 tournament as they finished third.
  6. ^ The 2020 season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

References

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  1. ^ "North Star Athletic Association Announces Formation". Valley City State University. April 22, 2013. Retrieved April 27, 2013.
  2. ^ a b "NSAA, which held post season tournaments in Watertown, announces it will be disbanding". KWAT. December 28, 2023. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  3. ^ Sand, Elisa (January 17, 2023). "Presentation College closing Aberdeen campus". Aberdeen News. Retrieved 18 January 2023.
  4. ^ a b "Iowa Wesleyan University Announces Closure". Iowa Wesleyan University. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  5. ^ "Waldorf University to join Great Plains Athletic Conference". Great Plains Athletic Conference. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  6. ^ "Viterbo University To Become Full CCAC Member Beginning In 2024-25". Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  7. ^ "University of Jamestown (N.D.) returns to North Star Athletic Association". North Star Athletic Association. Retrieved 14 November 2023.
  8. ^ a b "NSIC Extends Invitation to the University of Jamestown". Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (Press release). November 21, 2023. Retrieved November 21, 2023.
  9. ^ a b "Frontier Adding Dickinson State as Newest Conference Member". Frontier Conference (Press release). December 12, 2023. Retrieved December 12, 2023.
  10. ^ a b "Frontier Conference Expands to 11 Full-time Members". Frontier Conference (Press release). May 21, 2024. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  11. ^ "University of Winnipeg announces cuts, eliminates wrestling and men's baseball". MetroNews. The Canadian Press. May 3, 2017. Archived from the original on May 4, 2017. Retrieved May 10, 2017.
  12. ^ Sommerfeldt, Tod (September 12, 2019). "College volleyball: Viterbo forced to forfeit games from 2018". Retrieved October 19, 2020.
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