FRANKLIN SPRINGS, Ga. — Emmanuel College announced the addition of Acrobatics and Tumbling as a varsity intercollegiate sport beginning in Fall 2020.

“The EC community is thrilled to add Acrobatics and Tumbling to our lineup of competitive sports,” said Director of Athletics Nate Moorman. “Acrobatics and Tumbling is an emerging sport within the NCAA and has exploded in sponsorship at the collegiate level over the past three years. With five schools in Conference Carolinas already offering A&T, it’s the perfect time to make the addition.”

Acrobatics and Tumbling is a discipline of USA Gymnastics. The sport involves tumbling, tosses, acrobatic lifts and pyramids. Teams compete in head-to-head competition in meets consisting of six events, including Compulsory, Acro, Pyramid, Toss, Tumbling and Team Event.

The sport is governed by the National Collegiate Acrobatics and Tumbling Association (NCATA). Competition will take place between February and April. The NCATA National Championships are held annually in April on an NCATA member campus with event and team champions crowned.

“We are thrilled to welcome Emmanuel College to the NCATA family,” said Dr. Renee Baumgartner, President of the NCATA. “On the heels of the emerging sport vote for DII and DIII, and the announcement of Conference Carolinas sponsorship of Acrobatics & Tumbling as a varsity sport, the addition of Emmanuel is very exciting for several reasons. Most importantly, this will result in more unique, varsity opportunities for young women in the region to compete.”

Emmanuel will become the 33rd member of the NCATA and the seventh member of Conference Carolinas. Current members of the conference sponsoring Acrobatics & Tumbling include Belmont Abbey, Chowan, Converse, Erskine, King, and Limestone. Coker plans to compete as an affiliate member of the conference in 2021.

“Emmanuel is our first member in the state of Georgia, which is home to a large population of young women who participate in gymnastics and in cheerleading,” said Executive Director Janell Cook. “With the recent growth within the region and in Conference Carolinas, we’re very excited about the new opportunities for young women to compete in Acrobatics & Tumbling.”

A national search will begin immediately for a head coach at EC. Interested parties can apply here. Emmanuel will begin competition with a limited schedule in 2020-21, with a full schedule beginning in 2021-22.