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Ohio Valley Conference

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Ohio Valley Conference
AssociationNCAA
Founded1948; 76 years ago (1948)
CommissionerBeth DeBauche (since 2009)
Sports fielded
  • 20
    • men's: 9
    • women's: 10
    • coeducational: 1
DivisionDivision I
SubdivisionFCS
No. of teams11
HeadquartersBrentwood, Tennessee
RegionMidwest and South
Official websiteovcsports.com
Locations
Location of teams in {{{title}}}
Ohio Valley Conference is located in USA Midsouth
Little Rock
Little Rock
Eastern Illinois
Eastern Illinois
Lindenwood
Lindenwood
Morehead State
Morehead State
SEMO
SEMO
SIUE
SIUE
USI
USI
Tenn State
Tenn State
Tenn Tech
Tenn Tech
UT Martin
UT Martin
Western Illinois
Western Illinois
Ohio Valley Conference

The Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern and Southeastern United States. It participates in Division I of the NCAA; the conference's football programs compete in partnership with the Big South Conference in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS; formerly known as Division I-AA), the lower of two levels of Division I football competition. The OVC has 11 members, seven of which compete in football in the conference.

History

[edit]

Primary source:[1]
The Ohio Valley Conference can trace its roots to 1941 when Murray State athletic director Roy Stewart, Eastern Kentucky athletic director Charles "Turkey" Hughes, and Western Kentucky public relations director Kelly Thompson first formulated the idea of establishing a regional athletics conference. The plan was put on hold due to World War II, but it was resurrected after the conclusion of the war. In 1948, the three schools joined with Louisville, Morehead State, and Evansville to form the Ohio Valley Conference. While many collegiate conferences are struggling today with the question of whether their policies and rules should be determined by the athletic departments or by the institutional heads, from the very beginning, the OVC has been run by the presidents of its member schools.

Historically, the OVC was a pioneer in racial desegregation, with Morehead State signing the conference's first Black athlete, Marshall Banks, in 1958. The rest of the OVC soon followed in Morehead State's wake. From 1986 to 2018, the OVC was unique among NCAA Division I conferences in that it included one historically Black university, Tennessee State University, in a conference that otherwise consists of institutions that are not traditionally Black. During this period, every other HBCU in NCAA Division I belonged to either the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference or Southwestern Athletic Conference. That distinction changed when both Hampton University and North Carolina A&T State University joined the Big South Conference in 2018 and 2021, respectively; both schools have since joined the Coastal Athletic Association.

The OVC has also been a leader in advancement of sports opportunities for women. The conference began adding championship competitions for women in 1977 several years after the AIAW began sponsoring national championships for women, but seven years before the NCAA was ready to move into the field. Since 2009, the OVC has been led by Commissioner Beth DeBauche, one of only six female commissioners for the thirty-two Division I conferences.[2]

Athletic rivalries, really close colleges and especially when competitors are in relatively close proximity, can generate problems with fan behavior, and the conference leadership struggled with controlling the issue for many years. When the national debate on the problem reached its apex in the mid-1990s, the OVC unveiled the national first of its kind "Sportsmanship Statement" in 1995, stating the conference's policy on, "... principles of fair play, ethical conduct and respect for one's opponent." Since then, the OVC has also introduced individual, team (for each sport), and institutional sportsmanship awards.

Founded by six schools, the expansions of 2007 and 2011 brought the Ohio Valley Conference membership to twelve schools, the most in its history. The OVC dropped to 10 members after the 2020–21 school year, when founding member Eastern Kentucky and Jacksonville State left for the Atlantic Sun Conference (then branded as the ASUN Conference; "ASUN" is still the official abbreviation).[3] At that time, the OVC was searching for teams to replace both.[4]

The OVC lost three more members after the 2021–22 school year. Football-sponsoring Austin Peay left for the ASUN, which ultimately launched its own football league in 2022.[5] Non-football Belmont left for the Missouri Valley Conference.[6] Another football school, founding member Murray State, left for the MVC. When announcing its move to the MVC, Murray State announced that it was seeking membership in the football-only Missouri Valley Football Conference, and also announced that it would continue to house its rifle team in the OVC.[7] In a separate statement, Murray State's president indicated that the football team would remain in the OVC in the 2022 season, ensuring that the OVC would retain its automatic bid to the FCS playoffs in that season and giving the league more time to add new football members.[8] Murray State would eventually be accepted by the MVFC effective in 2023.[9]

Also in July 2022, the OVC added two non-football members in the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, athletically known as Little Rock,[10] and the University of Southern Indiana, which started a transition from NCAA Division II,[11] plus a new football-sponsoring member in Lindenwood University, also transitioning from D-II.[12]

According to a report from Matt Brown of the Extra Points college sports blog, the OVC expected to lose Murray State, and was considering multiple expansion candidates, with Southern Indiana among them. Other schools named by Brown's sources as possible candidates were FCS programs Arkansas–Pine Bluff and Western Illinois, plus potential Division II upgraders Grand Valley State, Hillsdale, and Lincoln Memorial.[13]

On February 22, 2022, the conference announced its intent to combine its football membership with the Big South Conference beginning in 2023 and operate as the Big South–OVC Football Association. The alliance follows the model that the ASUN and Western Athletic Conference used in 2021 and 2022 before merging their football leagues in 2023 as the United Athletic Conference.[14]

Shortly after the 2022 membership changes took effect, the OVC and the Horizon League jointly announced that they would merge their men's tennis leagues under the Horizon banner, effective immediately. All five OVC members that sponsored men's tennis became Horizon affiliates in that sport.[15]

On March 28, 2023, the OVC announced it was adding men's soccer as its 19th championship sport. The four OVC members sponsoring the sport in other conferences were joined by Chicago State University, Houston Christian University, University of the Incarnate Word, and Liberty University.[16] Chicago State was also announced as an incoming men's and women's golf associate on that day.[17] Chicago State's OVC teams left the conference at the end of the 2023–24 school year when the university joined the Northeast Conference, which sponsors all sports that CSU housed in the OVC.[18]

On May 12, 2023, it was announced that Western Illinois University would join the OVC from the Summit League in most non-football sports beginning for the 2023 season. Western Illinois football, which was then a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference, played the 2023 season in that league before joining the university's other sports in the OVC for the 2024 season.[19] Western later announced its men's soccer team would also play the 2023 season in its former all-sports home of the Summit League before joining the OVC in 2024.[20]

OVC Digital Network

[edit]

In August 2012, the OVC announced that it had launched the OVC Digital Network as a replacement for and improvement over the conference's former efforts to provide streaming video coverage of many athletic events that had been in place since 2006.[21] This website carried live, student-produced coverage of most conference games and some non-conference games in baseball, men's and women's basketball, football, soccer, softball, and volleyball as well as some coaches' shows, special presentations, and archived game-casts available for later viewing.

In its first two years, the network provided well over 600,000 viewings of streamed live video of more than 1,400 events.[22]

In the 2018–19 school year, the coverage previously carried on the OVC Digital Network was switched over to ESPN+.

Member schools

[edit]

Full members

[edit]
Institution Location Founded Joined Type Enrollment Endowment
(millions)
Nickname Colors
University of Arkansas at Little Rock Little Rock, Arkansas 1927 2022 Public 8,197 $80 Trojans      
Eastern Illinois University Charleston, Illinois 1895 1996 8,857 $87.3 Panthers    
Lindenwood University St. Charles, Missouri 1827 2022 Private 6,992 $143.4 Lions    
Morehead State University Morehead, Kentucky 1887 1948 Public 8,810 $71 Eagles    
Southeast Missouri State University Cape Girardeau, Missouri 1873 1991 9,927 $84.2 Redhawks    
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Edwardsville, Illinois 1957 2008 12,860 $27.4 Cougars    
University of Southern Indiana Evansville, Indiana[a] 1965 2022 7,361 $103 Screaming Eagles      
Tennessee State University Nashville, Tennessee 1912 1986[b] 9,218 $91.1 Tigers/Lady Tigers    
Tennessee Technological University Cookeville, Tennessee 1915 1949 9,902 $96.2 Golden Eagles    
University of Tennessee at Martin Martin, Tennessee 1927 1992 6,873 $51 Skyhawks      
Western Illinois University Macomb, Illinois 1899 2023[c] 7,643[23] $63.6 Leathernecks    
Notes
  1. ^ Postal address; the campus actually lies in unincorporated Vanderburgh County.
  2. ^ The Tennessee State men's basketball team joined the OVC a year after becoming a full member for other sports (1987–88); while its football team joined the OVC two years after (1988–89).
  3. ^ The Western Illinois men's soccer team joined the OVC in 2024, a year after becoming a full member for other sports. The football team similarly did not join the Big South–OVC Football Association until 2024.

Affiliate members

[edit]

Years listed in this table are calendar years. For schools that play only spring sports (such as beach volleyball) in the OVC, the calendar year of arrival precedes the first season of competition.

Institution Location Founded Joined Type Enrollment Nickname Colors OVC
sport(s)
Primary
conference
Houston Christian University Houston, Texas 1960 2023 Private 2,567 Huskies     men's soccer Southland
University of the Incarnate Word San Antonio, Texas 1881 2023 Private 9,366 Cardinals       men's soccer Southland
Liberty University Lynchburg, Virginia 1971 2023 Private 16,000[a] Flames       men's soccer CUSA
Murray State University Murray, Kentucky 1922 2022 Public 10,495 Racers     rifle MVC
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Chattanooga, Tennessee 1886 2020 Public 11,388 Mocs       beach volleyball SoCon
  1. ^ Approximate on-campus enrollment. Including online students, Liberty claims an enrollment of over 130,000.

Former full members

[edit]
Institution Location Founded Joined Left Type Nickname Colors Conference
they joined
after leaving
the OVC
Current
conference
University of Akron Akron, Ohio 1870 1980 1987 Public Zips     NCAA D-I Independent MAC
Austin Peay State University Clarksville, Tennessee 1927 1962 2022 Governors     ASUN
Belmont University Nashville, Tennessee 1890 2012 Private Bruins       Missouri Valley
East Tennessee State University Johnson City, Tennessee 1911 1958 1978 Public Buccaneers/
Lady Buccaneers
[a]
    SoCon
Eastern Kentucky University Richmond, Kentucky 1906 1948 2021 Colonels     ASUN
University of Evansville Evansville, Indiana 1854 1952 Private Purple Aces       ICC
(NCAA Division II)
Missouri Valley
Jacksonville State University Jacksonville, Alabama 1883 2003 2021 Public Gamecocks     ASUN CUSA
University of Louisville Louisville, Kentucky 1798 1948 1949 Cardinals     NCAA Independent ACC
Marshall University Huntington, West Virginia 1837 1949 1952 Thundering Herd     NCAA Independent[b] Sun Belt
Middle Tennessee State University Murfreesboro, Tennessee 1911 1952 2000 Blue Raiders     Sun Belt CUSA
Murray State University Murray, Kentucky 1922 1948 2022 Racers     Missouri Valley
Samford University Homewood, Alabama 1841 2003 2008 Private Bulldogs     SoCon
Western Kentucky University[c] Bowling Green, Kentucky 1906 1948 1982 Public Hilltoppers/
Lady Toppers
    Sun Belt CUSA
Youngstown State University Youngstown, Ohio 1908 1981 1988 Penguins     Mid-Continent Horizon
NCAA I-AA Independent
(football)
MVFC
(football)
Notes
  1. ^ Since leaving the OVC, ETSU has dropped the word "Lady" from its women's team nicknames.
  2. ^ Marshall left the OVC to become an Independent for one year prior to joining the Mid-American Conference (MAC) effective with the 1953–54 school year.
  3. ^ Western Kentucky rejoined the OVC for football only in the 1999 and 2000 football seasons (1999–2000 and 2000–01 school years).

Former affiliate members

[edit]
Institution Location Founded Joined Left Type Nickname Colors Sport Current
primary
conference
Current
conference
in former
OVC sport
Chicago State University Chicago, Illinois 1867 2023–24 2024–25 Public Cougars     men's soccer,
men's golf
women's golf
NEC
Columbus State University Columbus, Georgia 1958 2012–13 2014–15 Public Cougars       Rifle Peach Belt
(NCAA D-II)
none[a]
Murray State University Murray, Kentucky 1922 2022–23[b] 2023–24 Public Racers     Football MVC
(NCAA D-I)
MVFC
Notes
  1. ^ Columbus State dropped rifle after the 2014–15 school year.
  2. ^ Measured from Murray State's departure as a full OVC member.

Membership timeline

[edit]
Western Illinois UniversitySummit LeagueSummit LeagueSummit LeagueInterstate Intercollegiate Athletic ConferenceUniversity of Southern IndianaGreat Lakes Valley ConferenceNCAA Division II independent schoolsUniversity of Arkansas at Little RockSun Belt ConferenceASUN ConferenceNCAA Division I independent schoolsArkansas Intercollegiate ConferenceLindenwood UniversityGreat Lakes Valley ConferenceMid-America Intercollegiate Athletics AssociationNCAA Division II independent schoolsHeart of America Athletic ConferenceAmerican Midwest ConferenceNAIA independent schoolsMissouri Valley ConferenceBelmont UniversityASUN ConferenceNCAA Division I independent schoolsTennessee Collegiate Athletic ConferenceVolunteer State Athletic ConferenceSouthern Illinois University EdwardsvilleGreat Lakes Valley ConferenceNCAA Division II independent schoolsConference USAASUN ConferenceJacksonville State UniversityASUN ConferenceNCAA Division II independent schoolsGulf South ConferenceSouthern States ConferenceSouthern States ConferenceSouthern ConferenceSamford UniversityASUN ConferenceDixie ConferenceEastern Illinois UniversitySummit LeagueSummit LeagueNCAA Division II independent schoolsInterstate Intercollegiate Athletic ConferenceUniversity of Tennessee at MartinNCAA Division II independent schoolsGulf South ConferenceVolunteer State Athletic ConferenceSoutheast Missouri State UniversityMid-America Intercollegiate Athletics AssociationTennessee State UniversityMidwest Athletic AssociationHorizon LeagueSummit LeagueYoungstown State UniversityMid-American ConferenceSummit LeagueNCAA Division I FBS independent schoolsUniversity of AkronSummit LeagueNCAA Division II independent schoolsOhio Athletic ConferenceASUN ConferenceAustin Peay State UniversityVolunteer State Athletic ConferenceSouthern ConferenceASUN ConferenceSouthern ConferenceEast Tennessee State UniversityVolunteer State Athletic ConferenceSmoky Mountain ConferenceConference USASun Belt ConferenceMiddle Tennessee State UniversityVolunteer State Athletic ConferenceTennessee Technological UniversitySun Belt ConferenceConference USAMid-American ConferenceSouthern ConferenceNCAA Division I independent schoolsMid-American ConferenceMarshall UniversityMurray State UniversityASUN ConferenceEastern Kentucky UniversityMorehead State UniversityConference USASun Belt ConferenceWestern Kentucky UniversityMissouri Valley ConferenceHorizon LeagueNCAA Division I independent schoolsIndiana Collegiate ConferenceUniversity of EvansvilleAtlantic Coast ConferenceAmerican Athletic ConferenceBig East Conference (1979–2013)Conference USAMetro ConferenceMissouri Valley ConferenceNCAA Division I FBS independent schoolsUniversity of Louisville

Full members (all sports)  Full members (non-football)  Associate members (football-only)  Associate members (other)  Other Conference  Other Conference 

Comments

[edit]
  • Morehead State's football team competes in the Pioneer Football League, a Division I FCS football-only conference whose members choose not to offer athletic scholarships for football.
  • Austin Peay's football team left the OVC after the 1996 season to compete as an NCAA D-I FCS Independent. After four seasons as an Independent, the team joined the Pioneer Football League in 2001, and remained there through the 2005 season. Austin Peay then returned to scholarship football, spending the 2006 season as an Independent before re-entering OVC football competition in 2007.

Conference divisions

[edit]

Starting with the 2012–13 school year, the twelve member schools were split into two divisions for those sports where all schools competed. In the 2014–15 season, women's sports with twelve teams returned to a single league table, while continuing to play a divisional schedule. Men's basketball moved to an 18-game schedule in 2017–18, and they continued to play home-and-home versus the former divisional rivals, and they play home-and-home versus two teams from the other division, with those opponents on a rotation that sets up different pairs from year-to-year. The OVC returned to a single-table format after Eastern Kentucky and Jacksonville State left in 2021.

East Division West Division
Belmont Austin Peay
Eastern Kentucky Eastern Illinois
Jacksonville State Murray State
Morehead State SIU Edwardsville
Tennessee State Southeast Missouri
Tennessee Tech UT Martin

Sports offered

[edit]

The Ohio Valley Conference currently offers championship competition in 19 NCAA sanctioned sports, with eight for men, 10 for women, and rifle for men's, women's, and coed teams.[24]

Teams in OVC competition
Sport Men's Women's Coed
Baseball
10
Basketball
11
11
Beach Volleyball
6
Cross Country
11
11
Football
6
Golf
11
9
Rifle
0
0
3
Soccer
8
10
Softball
10
Tennis
7
Track and Field (Indoor)
8
10
Track and Field (Outdoor)
9
10
Volleyball
11

Men's sponsored sports by school

[edit]

Departing members are displayed in red.

School Baseball Basketball Cross
Country
Football Golf Rifle[a] Soccer Track
& Field
(Indoor)
Track
& Field
(Outdoor)
Total
OVC
Sports
Eastern Illinois Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes 8
Lindenwood Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes No No 6
Little Rock Yes Yes Yes No Yes No No Yes Yes 6
Morehead State Yes Yes Yes No[b] Yes Yes[c] No No Yes 6
SIU Edwardsville Yes Yes Yes No Yes No Yes Yes Yes 7
Southeast Missouri Yes Yes Yes Yes No No No Yes Yes 6
Southern Indiana Yes Yes Yes No Yes No Yes Yes Yes 7
Tennessee State No[d] Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Yes 6
Tennessee Tech Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No No No 5
UT Martin Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes[e] No No No 6
Western Illinois Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes 8
Associate members
Houston Christian Yes 1
Incarnate Word Yes 1
Liberty Yes 1
Murray State Yes[c] 1
Totals 10 11 11 7 10 3 8 8 8 9 77
Notes
  1. ^ Rifle is technically a men's sport, but men's, women's, and coed teams all compete against each other.
  2. ^ Morehead State football competes at the non-scholarship FCS level in the Pioneer Football League.
  3. ^ a b Fields a single coed rifle team.
  4. ^ Tennessee State plans to begin sponsoring baseball by no later than 2028.[25]
  5. ^ Fields two separate rifle teams—one coed, and one women-only.
Men's varsity sports not sponsored by the Ohio Valley Conference which are played by OVC schools
School Ice Hockey Swimming & Diving Rodeo[a] Tennis Volleyball Wrestling
Eastern Illinois Summit Horizon
Lindenwood Independent[26] MIVA
Little Rock Pac-12
SIU Edwardsville MAC
Southern Indiana Summit Horizon
Tennessee State [b] Horizon
Tennessee Tech Horizon
UT Martin NIRA[c]
Notes
  1. ^ Rodeo is sanctioned by the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association (NIRA), not the NCAA.
  2. ^ Tennessee State will add men's ice hockey for the 2025–26 season. They will compete as an independent.[27]
  3. ^ UT Martin considers rodeo to be a varsity sport.

Women's sponsored sports by school

[edit]

Departing members in red.

School Basketball Beach Volleyball Cross Country Golf Rifle [a] Soccer Softball Tennis Track & Field
(Indoor)
Track & Field
(Outdoor)
Volleyball (Indoor) Total OVC Sports
Eastern Illinois Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes 10
Lindenwood Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes 10
Little Rock Yes No Yes Yes No Yes No No Yes Yes Yes 7
Morehead State Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes 10
Southeast Missouri Yes No Yes No No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes 8
Southern Indiana Yes No Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes 9
SIU Edwardsville Yes No Yes No No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes 8
Tennessee State Yes No Yes Yes No No[b] Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes 8
Tennessee Tech Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes 8
UT Martin Yes Yes Yes No Yesx2 Yes Yes No No No Yes 7
Western Illinois Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes 10
Associate members
Chattanooga Yes 1
Murray State Yes 1
Totals 11 6 11 8 4 10 10 7 10 10 11 99
  1. ^ Rifle is technically a men's sport, but men's, women's, and coed teams all compete against each other. All competing OVC schools have coed teams, and UT Martin has both a women's and a coed team.
  2. ^ Tennessee State plans to begin sponsoring women's soccer by no later than 2028.[25]
Women's varsity sports not sponsored by the Ohio Valley Conference which are played by OVC schools
School Equestrian[a] Gymnastics Ice Hockey Lacrosse Rodeo[b] Stunt[a] Swimming & Diving Wrestling[a]
Eastern Illinois Summit
Lindenwood AHA ASUN[28] Independent
Little Rock MVC
Southeast Missouri MIC
Southern Indiana Summit
Tennessee State [c]
UT Martin ECAC NIRA Independent
  1. ^ a b c Part of the NCAA Emerging Sports for Women program.
  2. ^ Rodeo is sanctioned by the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association (NIRA), not the NCAA. UT Martin considers rodeo to be a varsity sport.
  3. ^ Tennessee State plans to begin sponsoring women's swimming & diving by no later than 2028.[25]

Conference champions

[edit]

Football conference champions

[edit]

This is a list of the champions since 2010.[29] For the complete history, see List of Ohio Valley Conference football champions.

Year Regular Season Champion Record FCS Championship Result
2010 Southeast Missouri State 7–1 Second Round
2011 Tennessee Tech*
Eastern Kentucky
Jacksonville State
6–2
6–2
6–2
First Round
First Round
DNP
2012 Eastern Illinois 6–1 First Round
2013 Eastern Illinois 8–0 Quarterfinals
2014 Jacksonville State 8–0 Second Round
2015 Jacksonville State 8–0 FCS Championship Runner Up
2016 Jacksonville State 7–0 First Round
2017 Jacksonville State 8–0 Second Round
2018 Jacksonville State 7–1 Second Round
2019 Austin Peay**
Southeast Missouri State
7–1 Quarterfinals
First Round
2020 Jacksonville State 6–1 Quarterfinals
2021 UT Martin 5–1 Second Round
2022 Southeast Missouri State***
UT Martin
5-0 First Round
  • – Tennessee Tech won the tie-breaker and received the automatic bid to the FCS playoffs.
    • – Austin Peay won the tie-breaker and received the automatic bid to the FCS Playoffs.
      • - Southeast Missouri won the tie-breaker and received the automatic bid to the FCS Playoffs.

Basketball

[edit]

This is a list of the champions since 2010. For the complete men's history, see List of Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball champions.

Year Men's Women's
Regular Season Champion Record Tournament champion Regular Season Champion Record Tournament champion
2010–11 Murray State 14–4 Morehead State Tourney Tennessee Tech 15–3 UT Martin
2011–12 Murray State 15–1 Murray State Tourney UT Martin 15–1 UT Martin
2012–13 East: Belmont
West: Murray State
14–2
10–6
Belmont Tourney East: Tennessee Tech
West: Eastern Illinois
12–4
12–4
UT Martin
2013–14 East: Belmont
West: Murray State
14–2
13–3
Eastern Kentucky Tourney East: Belmont
West: UT Martin
10–6
15–1
UT Martin
2014–15 East: Eastern Kentucky & Belmont
West: Murray State
11–5
16–0
Belmont Tourney UT Martin 16–0 Tennessee State
2015–16 East: Belmont
West: UT Martin & Murray State
12–4
10–6
Austin Peay Tourney UT Martin 14–2 Belmont
2016–17 East: Belmont
West: UT Martin
15–1
10–6
Jacksonville State Tourney Belmont 16–0 Belmont
2017–18 Murray State 15–2 Murray State Tourney Belmont 18–0 Belmont Tourney
2018–19 Belmont
Murray State
16–2 Murray State Tourney Belmont 16–2 Belmont Tourney
2019–20 Belmont
Murray State
15–3 Belmont Tourney Belmont
UT Martin
16–2 Southeast Missouri State Tourney
2020–21 Belmont 18–2 Morehead State Tourney UT Martin 17–4 Belmont Tourney
2021–22 Murray State 18–0 Murray State Tourney Belmont 16–2 Belmont Tourney
2022–23 Morehead State 14–4 Southeast Missouri Tourney Little Rock 17–1 Tennessee Tech Tourney
2023–24 Little Rock
Morehead State
UT Martin
14–4 Morehead State Tourney Southern Indiana 17–1 Southern Indiana Tourney

Baseball

[edit]

This is a list of the champions since 2010.

Year Regular Season Champion OVC
record
Season
record
Tournament champion OVC
record
Season
record
2010 Tennessee Tech 14–6 31–25 Jacksonville State 15–8 32–26
2011 Austin Peay 17–6 34–24 Austin Peay 17–6 34–24
2012 Austin Peay
Eastern Kentucky
19–7 40–24
31–23
Austin Peay 19–7 40–24
2013 Tennessee Tech 24–6 40–17 Austin Peay 22–7 47–15
2014 Southeast Missouri 23–7 37–20 Jacksonville State 18–12 36–27
2015 Southeast Missouri 22–8 36–23 Morehead State 20–10 38–22
2016 Southeast Missouri 22–8 39–21 Southeast Missouri 22–8 39–21
2017 Tennessee Tech 23–7 39–18 Tennessee Tech 23–7 39–18
2018 Tennessee Tech 27–3 53–12 Morehead State 18–12 37–26
2019 Jacksonville State 22–8 39–23 Jacksonville State 22–8 39–23
2020 Canceled
2021 Southeast Missouri State 17–10 30–22 Southeast Missouri State 17–10 30–22
  • # = 2009 Eastern Illinois lost 1 conference and 4 non-conference games by forfeit for using an ineligible player.

Softball

[edit]

This is a list of the champions since 2010.

Year Regular Season Champion OVC
record
Season
record
Tournament champion OVC
record
Season
record
2010 UT Martin 22–3 47–11 Jacksonville State 13–6 30–19
2011 Eastern Illinois 26–4 40–12 Jacksonville State 21–9 40–21
2012 UT Martin 23–6 39–22 UT Martin 23–6 39–22
2013 East– Eastern Kentucky
West– Eastern Illinois
19–6
20–3
36–20
36–14
Jacksonville State 11–11 30–27
2014 East– Jacksonville State
West– SIUE
22–5
19–5
40–15
30–23
SIUE 19–5 30–23
2015 SIUE 20–6 43–16 Tennessee Tech 15–11 33–28
2016 Jacksonville State 26–0 43–17 Jacksonville State 26–0 43–17
2017 Jacksonville State 15–1 41–12 Jacksonville State 15–1 41–12
2018 Eastern Kentucky 19–3 45–21 Jacksonville State 16–6 35–25
2019 Southeast Missouri State
Jacksonville State
17–5 46–18
36–15
Southeast Missouri State 17–5 46–18
2020 Canceled
2021 Southeast Missouri 23–6 30–17 Eastern Kentucky 22–9 35–17
2022 Murray State 21–7 40–18–1 Murray State 21–7 40–18–1

Men's soccer

[edit]

Men's soccer was first sponsored by the OVC in 2023.[30]

Year Regular season champions Tournament champions
2023 SIUE SIUE

Women's soccer

[edit]

This is a list of champions since 2010.[31]

Year Regular season champions Tournament champions
2010 Morehead State Morehead State
2011 Southeast Missouri UT Martin
2012 UT Martin UT Martin
2013 UT Martin Morehead State
2014 Southeast Missouri SIUE
2015 Murray State Murray State
2016 Murray State SIUE
2017 Murray State Murray State
2018 UT Martin Murray State
2019 Southeast Missouri Belmont
2020-21 Murray State SIUE
2021 UT Martin SIUE
2022 Tennessee Tech SIUE
2023 Tennessee Tech Morehead State

Facilities

[edit]
School Football stadium Capacity Soccer stadium Capacity Basketball arena Capacity Baseball stadium Capacity Softball stadium Capacity Volleyball arena Capacity
Eastern Illinois O'Brien Field 10,000 Lakeside Soccer Field 1,000 Lantz Arena 5,300 Coaches Stadium
at Monier Field
500 Williams Field 200 Lantz Arena 5,300
Lindenwood Hunter Stadium 7,450 Hunter Stadium 7,450 Hyland Arena 3,270 Lou Brock Sports Complex 700 Lou Brock Sports Complex 300 Hyland Arena 3,270
Little Rock Non-football school Coleman Sports Complex 300 Jack Stephens Center 5,600 Gary Hogan Field 2,550 Non-softball school Jack Stephens Center 5,600
Morehead State Jayne Stadium 10,000 Jayne Stadium 10,000 Ellis Johnson Arena 6,500 John "Sonny" Allen Field 1,200 University Field 500 Ellis Johnson Arena 6,500
Southeast Missouri State Houck Stadium 11,015 Houck Stadium 11,015 Show Me Center 6,972 Capaha Field 2,000 Southeast Softball Complex 1,000 Houck Fieldhouse 1,000
Southern Indiana Non-football school Strassweg Field Screaming Eagles Arena 4,800 USI Baseball Field 1,200 USI Softball Field Screaming Eagles Arena 4,800
SIU Edwardsville Non-football school Bob Guelker Field at Ralph Korte Stadium 4,000 First Community Arena 4,000 Roy E. Lee Field at Simmons Baseball Complex 1,500 Cougar Field 800 First Community Arena 4,000
Tennessee State Nissan Stadium
Hale Stadium
68,000
10,000
Non-soccer school Gentry Complex 10,500 Non-baseball school Tiger Field 500 Kean Hall 2,500
Tennessee Tech Tucker Stadium 16,500 Tech Soccer Field 800 Eblen Center 9,280 Bush Stadium at Averitt Express Baseball Complex 1,100 Tech Softball Field 800 Eblen Center 9,280
UT Martin Graham Stadium 7,500 Skyhawk Soccer Field 500 Skyhawk Arena 4,300 Skyhawk Baseball Field 500 Bettye Giles Softball Field 500 Skyhawk Fieldhouse 3,000
Western Illinois Hanson Field 16,368 John MacKenzie Alumni Field 1,000 Western Hall 5,139 Alfred D. Boyer Stadium 500 Mary Ellen McKee Stadium 550 Western Hall 5,139
Men's soccer affiliates
School Stadium Capacity
Houston Christian Sorrels Field 500
Incarnate Word Gayle and Tom Benson Stadium 6,000
Liberty Osborne Stadium 1,000

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "OVC History". Ohio Valley Conference. July 28, 2009. Archived from the original on October 2, 2015. Retrieved September 29, 2015.
  2. ^ "Staff Directory". Ohio Valley Conference/Sidearm Sports. July 29, 2009. Archived from the original on September 30, 2015. Retrieved September 29, 2015.
  3. ^ "ASUN Conference Announces Three New Institutions; Adds Football as 20th Sport" (Press release). ASUN Conference. January 29, 2021. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  4. ^ Verdun, Dan (February 5, 2021). "With two members leaving, the Ohio Valley Conference searches for answers". ChicagoNow.
  5. ^ "ASUN Conference Welcomes Austin Peay State University as its Newest Member" (Press release). ASUN Conference. September 17, 2021.
  6. ^ Organ, Mike. "Belmont leaving the Ohio Valley Conference, according to report". The Tennessean. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  7. ^ "Murray State University Joins The Missouri Valley Conference" (Press release). Murray State Racers. January 7, 2022. Retrieved January 7, 2022.
  8. ^ Wright, John (January 10, 2022). "Murray State accepts MVC invitation". Murray Ledger & Times. Murray, KY. Retrieved January 11, 2022.
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