Rox scored three in the third, holding on for a wild 6-5 victory

CASTLETON, Vt. (WCAX) – 50 years of organized sports at the Division III level may not seem like a long time, but every minute means a lot to those who play the games. Although Middlebury and Norwich have collected the hardware in recent decades, neither school was part of the original D-III in 1973. There were three state colleges: Castleton, Lyndon, and Johnson, three major cogs of the newly formed Vermont State University. Middlebury has become one of the premier athletic departments in Division III since their entry into the championship league in the mid-1990s. Current women’s lacrosse head coach Kate Livesay played on both the field hockey and lacrosse teams at the turn of the millennium. “It’s really changed,” Livesay said. “When I was a player, we got boundaries for the first time. And when I graduated, Googles came into the mix. So it has really adapted and evolved over the last 20-25 years.” And they are not the only ones. The NESCAC’s eleven schools have made the league a powerhouse on the scale of D-III sports. “When I started here, it was kind of the first NESCAC tournament,” LIvesay said. “When we talk about preparing for the NCAA Tournament, I think you know you’re so tested every week of your season. You were really prepared in a different way going into NCAAs. But success isn’t just defined on the turf, ice or hardwood for college athletes in Vermont. Many dedicate their time to improving the student-athlete experience for everyone. The Student Athlete Advisory Committee was formed in 1989 and Castelton sprinter Zackary Durr is the national representative for the Little East Conference. “It’s really fun to be able to meet different athletes from different schools,” Durr said. “And it’s just really good, especially for this university, to be able to draw attention to ourselves on a national level.” Durr says the committee’s goal is to encourage student-athletes to give back to their communities and help build friendly relationships between rivals on the field. “Get more student athletes involved and want to do more community service,” Durr explained the organization’s goals. “Do more social events so that student-athletes from different teams can get to know each other better. I think it is very important that all of our student athletes support each other.” “After the whistle you see the teams intermingling, you see your best friends catching up who went to high school or played club together,” Livesay added. “You see coaches shaking hands and catching up on their families. So for me, what this experience is about is demanding so much from ourselves and our players, and going out and just playing hard and being really proud of what we put on the field, but being collegial and respectful of our opponents along the way. Castleton just had an athlete earn All-American honors at the D-III Track and Field Championships, with Harrison Leombruno-Nicholson finishing 11th nationally in the javelin, while the Middlebury women’s lacrosse team will attempt to win a 4th straight national championship on Sunday afternoon to claim.