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, the lower of two levels of Division I football competition. The OVC has 11 members, six of which compete in football in the conference.
The Summit League, or The Summit, is an NCAA Division I intercollegiate athletic conference with its membership mostly located in the Midwestern United States, from Minnesota in the east, to the Dakotas, Nebraska and Colorado to the West, and Missouri and Oklahoma to the South. Founded as the Association of Mid-Continent Universities in 1982, it rebranded as the Mid-Continent Conference in 1989, then again as the Summit League on June 1, 2007. The league headquarters are in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
The Eastern Illinois Panthers are the intercollegiate athletic programs of Eastern Illinois University (EIU) located in Charleston, Illinois, United States. The Panthers athletic program is a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) and competes at the NCAA Division I level in the Football Championship Subdivision. EIU's colors are blue and gray. Selected as the team mascot in 1930, EIU's panther was informally known as "Billy" for many years and was officially named "Billy the Panther" in 2008. Panther teams have won five NCAA national championships in three sports. The Panthers also won the 1969 NAIA men's soccer title.
The Western Illinois Leathernecks are the teams and athletes that represent Western Illinois University, located in Macomb, Illinois, in NCAA Division I sports. The school's primary conference affiliation is with the Ohio Valley Conference; its football team is a member of the Division I FCS Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) and its men's soccer team plays in the Summit League, in which the school had been a member since that conference's formation in 1982. Western Illinois announced on May 12, 2023 its departure from the Summit League to become a full member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) in most sports beginning seven weeks subsequent on July 1. Two Leathernecks teams will play outside the OVC in the fall 2023 season before joining the rest of the school's teams in the OVC in 2024—the football team in the MVFC, and the men's soccer team in the Summit League.
The Murray State Racers are the athletic teams that represent Murray State University (MSU), located in Murray, Kentucky, United States, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the NCAA Division I ranks, primarily competing in the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) since the 2022–23 academic year. The Racers previously competed in the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) from 1948–49 to 2021–22; and in the Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) from 1933–34 to 1947–48.
The UT Martin Skyhawks are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Tennessee at Martin (UTM) in Martin, Tennessee, United States. The Skyhawks athletic program is a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) and competes at the NCAA Division I level including the Football Championship Subdivision. The UTM mascot is Captain Skyhawk. The school colors are navy and orange.
The Liberty Flames men's soccer team is an intercollegiate varsity sports team of Liberty University. As of the current 2023 season, the team is a member of the NCAA Division I Ohio Valley Conference. Twice in the program's history they have qualified for the NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship, earning bids into the 2007 and 2011 editions of the tournament while a member of the Big South Conference.
The SIU Edwardsville Cougars men's soccer team represents Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) in the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) of NCAA Division I soccer. The Cougars play their home matches on Bob Guelker Field at Ralph Korte Stadium located in the southwest corner of the SIUE campus in Edwardsville, Illinois.
The Eastern Illinois Panthers men's soccer team represents Eastern Illinois University (EIU) as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference in NCAA Division I soccer. The Panthers play their home matches at Lakeside Soccer Field located directly south of the Lantz Arena complex on the EIU campus in Charleston, Illinois.
The SIU Edwardsville Cougars women's soccer team represent Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) in the Ohio Valley Conference of NCAA Division I soccer. The Cougars play their home matches on Bob Guelker Field at Ralph Korte Stadium located in the southwest corner of the SIUE campus in Edwardsville, Illinois. Derek Burton has been head coach since 2008.
The 2018 Ohio Valley Conference women's soccer tournament was the postseason women's soccer tournament for the Ohio Valley Conference held from October 26 through November 4, 2018. The first round and quarterfinals of the tournament were held at campus sites hosted by the #3 and #4 seeds, while the semifinals and final took place at Skyhawk Soccer Field in Martin, Tennessee. The eight-team single-elimination tournament consisted of four rounds based on seeding from regular season conference play. The Murray State Racers were the defending champions and successfully defended their title with a 2–1 win over the Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks in the final. The conference tournament title was the fourth for the Murray State women's soccer program and the third for head coach Jeremy Groves.
The 2019 Ohio Valley Conference women's soccer tournament was the postseason women's soccer tournament for the Ohio Valley Conference held from November 1 through November 10, 2019. The first round and quarterfinals of the tournament were held at campus sites hosted by the #3 and #4 seeds, while the semifinals and final took place at Houck Stadium in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. The eight-team single-elimination tournament consisted of four rounds based on seeding from regular season conference play. The Murray State Racers were the defending champions and did not defend their title, losing to eventual champions Belmont 2–1 in the Semifinals. Belmont went on to beat SIUE on penalties in the final. The conference tournament title was the first for the Belmont women's soccer program and the first for head coach Heather Henson.
The Chicago State Cougars men's soccer program represents the Chicago State University in all NCAA Division I men's college soccer competitions. The Cougars soccer team began play in NCAA Division I in the 2020–21 season and the Western Athletic Conference in the 2021 season. CSU moved to the Mid-American Conference (MAC) as a men's soccer affiliate for the 2022 season. After that season, the MAC shut down its men's soccer league, and the Cougars joined the newly formed men's soccer league of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC). They would only play OVC soccer for one season, as Chicago State will become a full member of the Northeast Conference (NEC) in July 2024.
The 2021 Ohio Valley Conference women's soccer tournament was the postseason women's soccer tournament for the Ohio Valley Conference held from October 29 through November 7, 2021. The first round and quarterfinals of the tournament were held at campus sites hosted by the #3 and #4 seeds, while the semifinals and final took place at Skyhawk Soccer Field in Martin, Tennessee. The eight-team single-elimination tournament consisted of four rounds based on seeding from regular season conference play. The SIU Edwardsville Cougars were the defending champions and successfully defended their crown by defeating top seeded UT Martin in the final. The conference tournament title was the fourth for the SIU Edwardsville women's soccer program, all of which have come under head coach Derek Burton. As tournament champions, SIU Edwardsville earned the Ohio Valley's automatic berth into the 2021 NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Tournament.
Beginning in the 2021–22 academic year, extensive changes occurred in NCAA conference membership, primarily at the Division I level.
The 2022–23 Morehead State Eagles men's basketball team represented Morehead State University in the 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Eagles, led by sixth-year head coach Preston Spradlin, played their home games at Ellis Johnson Arena in Morehead, Kentucky as members of the Ohio Valley Conference. With a victory against Eastern Illinois on February 22, 2023, the Eagles clinched their first outright OVC regular season title since 1984. They lost to Southeast Missouri State in the OVC tournament semifinals. As a regular season conference champion who did not win their conference tournament, the Eagles received an automatic bid to the National Invitation Tournament, the school's first trip to the NIT. There they upset No. 1-seed Clemson in the first round before being losing to UAB in the second round.
The 2023 SIU Edwardsville Cougars men's soccer team represents Southern Illinois University Edwardsville during the 2023 NCAA Division I men's soccer season, the school's 57th season. The Cougars are coached by Cale Wassermann. The team plays their home games on Bob Guelker Field at the Ralph Korte Stadium as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC).
The 2023 Ohio Valley Conference men's soccer tournament was the inaugural edition of the Ohio Valley Conference men's soccer tournament. The tournament decided the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) champion and automatic qualifier (AQ) into the 2023 NCAA Division I men's soccer tournament. All games were played at Ralph Korte Stadium in Edwardsville, Illinois.
The 2023 Ohio Valley Conference women's soccer tournament was the postseason women's soccer tournament for the Ohio Valley Conference held from October 27 through November 5, 2023. The first round and quarterfinals of the tournament were held at campus sites hosted by the #3 and #4 seeds, while the semifinals and final took place at Tech Soccer Field in Cookeville, Tennessee. The eight-team single-elimination tournament consisted of four rounds based on seeding from regular season conference play. The SIU Edwardsville Cougars were the defending champions and were unable to defend their title as they lost to Southeast Missouri State in a penalty shootout in the Quarterfinals. Morehead State would go on to defeat Tennessee Tech in overtime in the Final, 1–0. The conference tournament title was the fourth for the Morehead State women's soccer program, and the first for head coach Chris Fox. This was Morehead State's first title since 2013. As tournament champions, Morehead State earned the Ohio Valley's automatic berth into the 2023 NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Tournament.
The Ohio Valley Conference women's soccer tournament is the conference championship tournament in soccer for the Ohio Valley Conference. In the current format, eight teams compete in the single-elimination tournament, with all games being played at the home field of the higher seed, with seeding based on regular season conference records. The tournament expanded from six teams to its current eight in 2017. The winner, declared conference champion, receives the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division I women's soccer championship.
