APPLETON, Wis. -- Lawrence University will continue to host the finals of the NCAA Division III Baseball Championship.
The university, which will partner with the Fox Cities Convention and Visitors Bureau to host the event, received word this week from the NCAA that the finals will be played at Time Warner Cable Field at Fox Cities Stadium in 2010 and 2011.
"We are excited at the prospect of having the baseball championship stay in the Fox Cities," said Lawrence Directors of Athletics Kim Tatro and Chris Howard in a joint statement. "We look forward to working with the Convention and Visitors Bureau and the local organizing committee. We have helped to make the championship experience for all the student-athletes, coaches, and fans a great one in the past, and we believe we can continue to do that in the future."
The Division III World Series has been at Fox Cities Stadium since 2000. This marks the seventh year Lawrence has served as co-host of the event with the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. Oshkosh has chosen not to continue as a co-host of the event after 2009.
The NCAA Division III Baseball Committee had recommended in February awarding the two-year bid to the Fox Cities. That recommendation was tabled by the championships committee, which wanted to take a closer look at Cleveland as a host site. Cleveland is part of a six-city pilot program designated by the NCAA to host multiple championships at one location through 2012.
The Division III Baseball Championship has enjoyed a successful run at Fox Cities Stadium, which is home to the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, a Class A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. The 2003 championship set an attendance record of 29,543, and the 2007 tournament ranks second in attendance at 24,872.
The championship has had an average attendance of 21,133 during its nine-year run, and last year's tournament drew 21,214.
This year's finals, which is an eight-team, double-elimination tournament, run from May 22-26.