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 Horizon League is a collegiate athletic conference in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I. Headquartered in Indianapolis, the league's eleven member schools are located in and near the Great Lakes region.
Curtis Granderson Jr., nicknamed "the Grandyman", is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Detroit Tigers, New York Yankees, New York Mets, Los Angeles Dodgers, Toronto Blue Jays, Milwaukee Brewers, and Miami Marlins.
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 UIC Flames are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Illinois Chicago, located in Chicago, Illinois, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the Division I level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), primarily competing in the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) since the 2022–23 academic year. The Flames previously competed in the D-I Horizon League from 1994–95 to 2021–22; in the D-I Mid-Continent Conference from 1982–83 to 1993–94; as an NCAA D-I Independent during the 1981–82 school year; and in the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) from 1949–50 to about 1980–81. Michael Lipitz joined UIC in October 2019 as the athletic director.
The Loyola Ramblers are the varsity sports teams of Loyola University Chicago. Most teams compete in the Atlantic 10 Conference, which the school joined in 2022 after leaving the Missouri Valley Conference. They previously played in the Horizon League. Notable athletes from Loyola have included middle-distance runner Tom O'Hara, volleyball player Thomas Jaeschke, and basketball players Mike Novak, Jerry Harkness, Les Hunter, Wayne Sappleton, Alfredrick Hughes, LaRue Martin, and Blake Schilb. The nickname "Ramblers" was first used in 1926. The Loyola Ramblers departed from the Missouri Valley Conference and joined the Atlantic 10 Conference effective July 1, 2022.
The Liberty Flames and Lady Flames are the athletics teams of Liberty University, in Lynchburg, Virginia, United States. They are a member of the NCAA Division I level in 20 sports. As of July 1, 2023, LU is a member of Conference USA (CUSA) for most sports, joining that league after five years as a member of the Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN).
The UIC Flames men's basketball team represents the University of Illinois Chicago in Chicago, Illinois, United States. The team competes in the Missouri Valley Conference. From 1994 to 2022, the team competed in the Horizon League. The Flames are currently coached by Rob Ehsan. The Flames have appeared three times in the NCAA Division I tournament, most recently in 2004.
The Loyola Ramblers men's basketball team represents Loyola University Chicago in Chicago, Illinois. The Ramblers participate as members of the Atlantic 10 Conference. The Ramblers had joined the Missouri Valley Conference in 2013, and stayed until 2022. Prior to 2013, the team had spent 34 seasons as a charter member of the Horizon League.
Les Miller Field at Curtis Granderson Stadium is a baseball venue in Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is home to the UIC Flames baseball team of the NCAA Division I Missouri Valley Conference. The facility has a capacity of 1,000 spectators and is named for Les Miller, UIC head baseball coach from 1949 to 1979, and Curtis Granderson, an alumnus of the program. During Miller's tenure, the program won over 500 games. Granderson was named conference player of the year with the Flames in 2002 and later played in Major League Baseball. On 17 September 2013, UIC broke ground on a new stadium on the same site, funded in part by donations from Granderson. It consists of a new structure housing a press box, dugouts, and grandstand, and was completed for the 2014 season.
Mark Miller is a retired American basketball player and current assistant coach for Robert Morris University in Chicago. He was a standout college player for the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) and played professionally in six countries before starting his coaching career.
The UIC Flames men's soccer team represents the University of Illinois at Chicago in all NCAA Division I men's college soccer competitions. The Flames previously played in the Horizon League, but moved to the Missouri Valley Conference on July 1, 2022.
Mike Dee is an American former baseball coach and outfielder. He played college baseball at the University of Wisconsin–La Crosse. He served as the head baseball coach at the UIC Flames (1999–2021). Under him, UIC reached six NCAA tournaments. Before coming to UIC, he was an assistant at Minnesota.
The 2014–15 UIC Flames men's basketball team represented the University of Illinois at Chicago in the 2014–15 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Their head coach was Howard Moore, serving his fifth year. The Flames played their home games at the UIC Pavilion and were members of the Horizon League. They finished the season 10–24, 4–12 in Horizon League play to finish in seventh place. They defeated Wright State and Oakland to advance to the semifinals of the Horizon League tournament where they lost to Green Bay.
The 2015–16 UIC Flames men's basketball team represented the University of Illinois at Chicago in the 2015–16 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They were led by first-year head coach Steve McClain, hired in the offseason to replace Howard Moore. The Flames played their home games at the UIC Pavilion and were members of the Horizon League. They finished the season 5–25, 3–15 in Horizon League play to finish in last place. They lost in the first round of the Horizon League tournament to Wright State.
The 2017 Horizon League baseball tournament was held from May 24 through 27 at Les Miller Field at Curtis Granderson Stadium in Chicago, home to conference regular-season champion UIC. The top six finishers of the league's seven teams met in the double-elimination tournament. UIC won the tournament to earn the conference's automatic bid to the 2017 NCAA Division I baseball tournament.
The 2019–20 UIC Flames men's basketball team represented the University of Illinois at Chicago in the 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Flames, led by fifth-year head coach Steve McClain, played their home games at Credit Union 1 Arena in Chicago, Illinois as members of the Horizon League. The finished the season 18–17, 10–8 in Horizon League to play to finish in a tie for fourth place. As the No. 4 seed in the Horizon League tournament, they defeated IUPUI, Youngstown State, and top-seeded Wright State to advance to the championship game. There they lost to Northern Kentucky.
The 2021–22 UIC Flames men's basketball team represented the University of Illinois at Chicago in the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Flames, led by second-year head coach Luke Yaklich, played their home games at Credit Union 1 Arena in Chicago, Illinois as members of the Horizon League.
The 2022–23 UIC Flames men's basketball team represented the University of Illinois at Chicago in the 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Flames, led by third-year head coach Luke Yaklich, played their home games at Credit Union 1 Arena in Chicago, Illinois as first-year members of the Missouri Valley Conference. They finished the season 12–19, 4–16 in MVC play to finish in eleventh place. They lost to Missouri State in the opening round of the MVC tournament.
2024 UIC Flames baseball team 
