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Automatic Qualifiers and At-Large Teams The Division III Men's Lacrosse Championship consists of a maximum field of 23 teams, of which 15 are determined by conferences (Pool A) that receive automatic qualification (AQ). Three berths (Pool B) are reserved for true independents and teams from conferences that do not receive an automatic qualification. Five berths (Pool C) are reserved for teams remaining from automatic-qualifying conferences that did not win their AQ berth. There are no set minimum or maximum berths from one region. Teams must play at least 10 regular-season games again Division III opponents in order to be considered for selection. To be considered for Pool B or Pool C selection, an institution must play at least 50% of its competition against Division III in-region opponents. See conferences for members and current standings. Evaluation regions are as follows:
Pool B and Pool C berths are determined by the Division III Men's Lacrosse Committee by examining results within the evaluation regions outlined above. Berths from Pool B and Pool C will be selected on a national basis, using regional selection criteria. There will be no predetermined regional allocations for Pool B and C. Primary Criteria for Selecting At-Large Teams All of the following primary criteria, which emphasize regional competition, are considered, but not in priority order:
Ranked opponents are those ranked at the time of the selection process only. Conference postseason games are included. Contests versus provisional and reclassifying members in their third and fourth years are counted. Provisional and reclassified members shall remain ineligible for rankings and selections. If an evaluation of the primary selection criteria listed above does not result in a decision by the committee regarding at-large selections, the following secondary criteria are reviewed (although not in priority order). Results against out-of-region Division III opponents as well as those in other classifications (i.e., provisional teams, NAIA, and the other two NCAA divisions) are used here.
Miscellaneous Selection Information Input is also provided by regional advisory committees. However, coaches' or other polls or rankings are not used by the selection committee. Although teams are assigned to evaluation regions, the NCAA considers games versus Division III opponents located within 200 miles of its campus to be "in-region" and part of the primary selection/ranking criteria. Tournament Pairings Once selected, teams will be grouped in clusters according to natural geographic proximity and then paired on that basis. A team may be moved to numerically balance the bracket if geographic proximity is maintained. Teams may be seeded on a regional basis using the regional selection criteria. However, geographic proximity takes precedence over seeding. Teams from the same conference do not have to play one another in the first round as long as geographic proximity is maintained. The highest seeded team that meets all selection criteria will be selected as the host institution, provided that geographic proximity is maintained. | ||||||||||||
