Great Lakes Valley Conference


The Great Lakes Valley Conference is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division II level. Its fifteen member institutions are located in the U.S. states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, and Missouri. There are also thirteen associate members that participate in sports not sponsored by their home conferences.

History

Formation

The GLVC grew out of discussions that started in 1972 between the athletic directors of Kentucky Wesleyan College, Bellarmine College, and Indiana State University at Evansville, with the goal of forming a men's basketball conference. The discussions eventually included Indiana Central University, Saint Joseph's College, and Ashland College. On July 7, 1978, at a meeting in Louisville hosted by Bellarmine, these six schools formed the GLVC, with the intention of competing in the 1978–79 season. Ashland, though considered a charter member, did not begin conference play until the league's second season, in 1979–80. From the time of its founding, the GLVC has been a member of NCAA Division II.
While the origins of the conference's name are lost to history, its initial footprint was bordered by the Great Lakes in the north and the Ohio Valley in the south. Following Southern Indiana's departure in July 2022, Indianapolis is the only remaining charter member.
The GLVC has been led by a full-time commissioner since 1996, first Carl McAloose, then Jim Naumovich. The conference office is located in Indianapolis. From 1978 to 1996, the Faculty Athletics Representatives of the member institutions were responsible for operating the conference. The FARs still cast the institutional votes at meetings where the presidents and chancellors are not present. This feature gives the GLVC a governance structure that is unique among Division I and Division II conferences.
Though conceived as a men's basketball league, the GLVC from the start planned to sponsor championships in golf, tennis, baseball, cross country, and track & field. The conference crowned golf and tennis champions in 1978-79 and added cross country and baseball the following year. Soccer became the sixth sport rather than track & field, with the first conference tournament held in 1980. In 1982, when the demise of the Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women brought women's college athletics under the NCAA, the GLVC began to sponsor women's sports. Within two years, the conference added women's championships in basketball, tennis, cross country, volleyball, and softball.

Expansion of membership and sport sponsorship

The conference experienced steady growth through the first three decades of its existence, expanding from six members to sixteen. The first addition was Lewis University in 1980, followed in 1984 by Indiana University – Purdue University Fort Wayne, then Northern Kentucky University in 1985 and Kentucky State University in 1989. The conference lost its first members with the departure of Ashland and Kentucky State, effective summer 1995, but increased in size when Quincy University, Southern [Illinois University Edwardsville] and the University of Wisconsin–Parkside began competition that fall, followed by the University of Missouri–St. Louis one year later. These changes initiated a westward shift in the GLVC's geographical footprint that has continued to the present.
The 1990s also featured an expansion in sports sponsorship. In 1995–96 the GLVC crowned its first champions in women's soccer and in men's and women's track and field. Women's golf was added in 1998–99, followed by men's and women's indoor track and field in 1999–2000. These additions increased the total number of conference sports from eleven to seventeen.
After IPFW left in 2001 to move to Division I, the GLVC considered further expansion, but not before redefining conference membership in 2005 to require the athletic program of each member to include seven core sports. The eleven members at the time all sponsored these sports, and subsequent new members would be required to sponsor them as well. Previously, the GLVC had no sports sponsorship requirement other than the NCAA Division II minimum. The conference began awarding the Commissioner's Cup to the member institution with the greatest success across the seven core sports, while continuing to award its All-Sports Trophy to the most successful program overall.
In the fall of 2005, the GLVC welcomed three more members—Drury University, Rockhurst University, and the University of Missouri-Rolla. SIUE left for Division I and the Ohio Valley Conference in 2008, but the conference continued to grow with the additions of Maryville University and the University of Illinois Springfield, which began GLVC competition in the fall of 2009. The GLVC reached sixteen members with the admission of William Jewell College, which began competing in fall 2011.
As the conference continued to grow, basketball remained its strongest sport, and the conference tournament, usually including both genders at the same neutral site, became its signature event. A GLVC team played in the championship game of the NCAA Division II men's basketball tournament in eleven consecutive seasons. Kentucky Wesleyan, winner of four men's national championships prior to the creation of the GLVC, won four more as a conference member, while Southern Indiana, Bellarmine, and Drury won one apiece, and Northern Kentucky won two women's national championships. Meanwhile, the GLVC became the leading Division II conference in swimming and diving. During its first decade in the conference, Drury won ten men's national championships and four women's national championships in the sport. After men's and women's swimming and diving became conference sports in 2013–14, the annual GLVC swimming and diving meet grew to become the most financially lucrative of the conference's championship events, surpassing the basketball tournament.
The admission of William Jewell, approved in October 2009, gave the conference six football-playing members, the minimum number needed to sponsor the sport. This set in motion plans to crown a football champion, ultimately starting in fall 2012. The addition of football in the GLVC's 35th year of competition was a historic move, as no conference at any level of the NCAA founded without football had ever added it after existing for so long as a non-football conference. Before competition began, the original six football-playing members were joined by new full member McKendree University and the GLVC's first associate members, Central State University and Urbana University, to give the conference nine teams for its initial football season. Though they competed in the GLVC for just one year, Central State and Urbana eventually were followed by a dozen other schools admitted to the league as associates in one or more sports while maintaining full membership elsewhere.
Just as the GLVC was adding football, the conference lost two of its premier basketball programs. In the fall of 2012, Northern Kentucky moved to Division I and the Atlantic Sun Conference, and one year later, Kentucky Wesleyan left to become a charter member of the newly formed Great Midwest Athletic Conference. Meanwhile, the GLVC welcomed Truman State University into the conference, to begin competition in 2013–14. The additions of McKendree and Truman State kept the GLVC at sixteen members.
In 2014, a unique interconference football partnership with the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association allowed Lincoln University and Baptist University">Missouri Baptist Convention">Baptist University to join the GLVC in football while otherwise remaining MIAA members. That autumn, the GLVC became the first NCAA Division II conference to create an inclusive league-wide digital streaming network – the GLVC Sports Network, which subsequently broadcast football and all other conference sports.
Drury and Bellarmine started wrestling programs for the 2016–17 season, enabling the conference to add wrestling as its 21st championship sport. The initial seven-team GLVC wrestling lineup also included Indianapolis, Maryville, McKendree, Truman State, and Wisconsin–Parkside, all former Division II wrestling independents.
The following year, the GLVC announced the addition of men's lacrosse as its 22nd championship sport, in partnership with the Gulf South Conference and Peach Belt Conference. The initial six-team lineup for spring 2018 included Indianapolis, Maryville, and four southern associate members. The partnership lasted for three seasons, after which the GLVC and GSC-PBC each had enough lacrosse-playing members to offer separate championships in the sport.

Recent history

Charter member St. Joseph's College closed in May 2017 because of financial troubles. One year later, Wisconsin–Parkside left the GLVC to join the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. Their departures reduced the conference to fourteen members.
In fall 2019 conference membership returned to 16 with the addition of two schools from the MIAA, Southwest Baptist and Lindenwood University. Their admission voided the MIAA-GLVC football partnership of the previous five seasons and resulted in Lincoln rejoining MIAA football. After just one year the conference reverted to fifteen members, as charter member Bellarmine moved to Division I and the ASUN, effective fall 2020.
In 2019 the GLVC and G-MAC established the annual America's Crossroads Bowl in Hobart, Indiana, featuring their highest-ranking football teams not qualifying for the NCAA Division II playoffs. In the 2021 and 2022 seasons, members of the two conferences also played a two-game crossover in the third and fourth Saturdays of the football season.
The GLVC added two women's sports for 2019–20, bowling and lacrosse, bringing the total number of conference sports to 24. In women's bowling, the initial lineup included 2017 national champion McKendree, fellow full members Drury, Lewis, and Maryville, plus associate members Lincoln, the University of Central Missouri, and Upper [Iowa University]. In women's lacrosse, the initial lineup in spring 2020 consisted of seven full members—regional powers Lindenwood and Indianapolis, along with Lewis, Maryville, McKendree, Quincy, and Rockhurst. The two sports were an immediate success, with Lindenwood and Indianapolis winning national championships in women's lacrosse and McKendree winning its second national title in women's bowling.
In March 2020, GLVC winter and spring sport competitions ended when the NCAA suspended play due to the COVID-19 pandemic. For the 2020–21 academic year, the GLVC held its fall 2020 conference sport competitions in spring 2021. Of the sixteen Division II conferences sponsoring football at the time, the GLVC was one of just four to crown a football champion in spring 2021.
The most recent departures from the GLVC came at the end of the 2021–22 academic year, when charter member Southern Indiana joined Lindenwood in moving to Division I and the Ohio Valley Conference, temporarily reducing the league to thirteen schools. They were replaced by associate member Upper Iowa, admitted to the GLVC as a full member effective fall 2023, and former associate member Lincoln, admitted effective fall 2024.
With the addition of new members, the GLVC amended the core sports requirement that had been in place since 2005. Starting in 2023–24, all full members must sponsor men's and women's basketball, men's and women's soccer, four additional men's sports, and four additional women's sports. The Commissioner's Cup was still awarded based on performance in the sports sponsored by all members; as of 2024–25, these included five women's sports and three men's sports.
The GLVC added three sports for 2025–26—women's wrestling, men's volleyball, and STUNT—bringing the total number of conference sports to 27. Women's wrestling debuted in partnership with the GLIAC, with a lineup including full members McKendree, Quincy, Upper Iowa, and William Jewell, and associate members Davenport University, Grand Valley State University, and Northern Michigan University. For men's volleyball the initial lineup included full members Maryville, Missouri S&T, Quincy, Rockhurst, and Southwest Baptist, plus associate members Roosevelt University, Thomas More University, and the University of Jamestown. For STUNT, the initial lineup included full members Maryville, Quincy, Southwest Baptist, Drury, and Lewis, plus associate members Ferris State University, Purdue University Northwest, and Trevecca Nazarene University.

Divisional play

The GLVC first adopted divisional play in 1996, for women's volleyball only. That sport competed in Blue and Green divisions until 2004, when it returned to a single table. All other sports competed in a single table until the conference expanded to fourteen members in 2005, when two seven-team divisions were adopted for basketball and most other core sports.
The organizational structure of the conference has varied dramatically since then, reflecting changes in membership and in the overall number of league members. As an added variable, the same structure has never been applied across all sports in any given year. For example, since 2005, men's and women's basketball have played in two divisions in ten seasons, three divisions in five seasons, and in a single table in five seasons. Meanwhile, during the same years, men's and women's soccer always played a single table. Two-division structures have been labeled East-West or Blue-Green, while three-division structures have been labeled East-West-North or East-West-Central.
As of 2025–26, the GLVC has divisional play in men's and women's tennis, and plays a single table in all other sports with regular season competition.

Chronological timeline

Current members

The GLVC currently has 15 full members, including ten private and five public institutions:
InstitutionLocationFoundedAffiliationUndergrad
Enrollment
NicknameJoinedColors
Drury UniversitySpringfield, Missouri1873UCC & DOC1,350Panthers2005
Springfield, Illinois1969Public1,633Prairie Stars2008
Indianapolis, Indiana1902United Methodist2,958Greyhounds1978
Lewis UniversityRomeoville, Illinois1932Catholic3,151Flyers1980
Lincoln UniversityJefferson City, Missouri1866Public
1,175Blue Tigers2023
Maryville UniversityTown and Country, Missouri1872Catholic Archdiocese of St. Louis|Catholic]3,608Saints2008
McKendree UniversityLebanon, Illinois1828United Methodist1,487Bearcats2010

Rolla, Missouri1870Public4,946Miners2005
1963Public3,782Tritons1995
Quincy UniversityQuincy, Illinois1860Catholic1,011Hawks1994
Rockhurst UniversityKansas City, Missouri1910Catholic1,630Hawks2005
Southwest Baptist UniversityBolivar, Missouri1878Baptist1,094Bearcats2019
Truman State UniversityKirksville, Missouri1867Public2,585Bulldogs2012
Upper Iowa UniversityFayette, Iowa1857Nonsectarian1,153Peacocks2022
William Jewell CollegeLiberty, Missouri1849Nonsectarian841Cardinals2009

;Notes:

Associate members

The GLVC currently has 13 associate members, including seven private and six public institutions. Years listed in this table are calendar years. For schools that play only spring sports in the GLVC, the calendar year of arrival precedes the first season of competition.
InstitutionLocationFoundedAffiliationUndergrad
Enrollment
NicknameJoinedColorsGLVC
sport
Primary
conference
University of Central MissouriWarrensburg, Missouri1871Public4,879Jennies2019women's bowlingMid-America
Davenport UniversityGrand Rapids, Michigan1866Nonsectarian1,923Panthers2025women's wrestlingGreat Lakes
Ferris State UniversityBig Rapids, Michigan1884Public6,532Bulldogs2025STUNTGreat Lakes
Grand Valley State UniversityAllendale, Michigan1960Public17,207Lakers2025women's wrestlingGreat Lakes
University of JamestownJamestown, North Dakota1883Presbyterian
898Jimmies2025 men's volleyballNorthern Sun
Missouri Western State UniversitySt. Joseph, Missouri1915Public2,097Griffons2020women's lacrosseMid-America
Newman UniversityWichita, Kansas1933Catholic818Jets2022women's bowlingMid-America
Northern Michigan UniversityMarquette, Michigan1899Public5,593Wildcats2025women's wrestlingGreat Lakes
Oklahoma Christian UniversityOklahoma City, Oklahoma1950Churches
of Christ
1,711Eagles and Lady Eagles|Lady Eagles]2024women's bowlingLone Star
Purdue University NorthwestHammond and
Westville, Indiana
1946Public4,622Pride2025STUNTGreat Lakes
Roosevelt UniversityChicago, Illinois1945Nonsectarian2,300Lakers2025 men's volleyballGreat Lakes
Thomas More UniversityCrestview Hills, Kentucky1921Catholic1,236Saints2025 men's volleyballGreat Midwest
Trevecca Nazarene UniversityNashville, Tennessee1901Church of the
Nazarene
1,328Trojans2025 STUNT Gulf South

;Notes:

Former members

Former members of the GLVC include six public and five private institutions:
InstitutionLocationFoundedAffiliationUndergrad
Enrollment
NicknameJoinedLeftCurrent
conference
Ashland UniversityAshland, Ohio1878Brethren1,886Eagles19781994Great Midwest
Bellarmine UniversityLouisville, Kentucky1950Catholic2,219Knights19782020Atlantic Sun
Indiana University–Purdue University Fort WayneFort Wayne, Indiana1964Public4,596Mastodons19842001Horizon
Kentucky State UniversityFrankfort, Kentucky1886Public
1,185Thorobreds and Thorobrettes|Thorobreds] &
Thorobrettes
19891994Southern
Kentucky Wesleyan CollegeOwensboro, Kentucky1858United
Methodist
772Panthers19782013Great Midwest
Lindenwood University1827Presbyterian4,048Lions20192022Ohio Valley
Northern Kentucky UniversityHighland Heights, Kentucky1968Public6,703Norse19852012Horizon
Saint Joseph's CollegeRensselaer, Indiana1889CatholicN/APumas19782017Closed in 2017
Southern Illinois University EdwardsvilleEdwardsville, Illinois1957Public7,505Cougars19942008Ohio Valley
Evansville, Indiana1965Public4,748Screaming
Eagles
19782022Ohio Valley
University of Wisconsin–ParksideSomers, Wisconsin1968Public2,442Rangers19942018Great Lakes

;Notes:

Former associate members

Former associate members of the GLVC include four public and four private institutions. Years listed in this table reflect calendar years. For fall sports, the calendar year of departure is the year after the last season of competition. For spring sports, the calendar year of arrival precedes the first season of competition.
;Notes:

Membership timeline


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id:line value:black
id:bg value:white
id:Full value:rgb # Use this color to denote a team that is a member in all sports
id:FullxF value:rgb # Use this color to denote a team that is a member in all sports except for football
id:AssocF value:rgb # Use this color to denote a team that is a member for football only
id:AssocOS value:rgb # Use this color to denote a team that is a member for another sport only
id:OtherC1 value:rgb # Use this color to denote a team that has moved in another conference
id:OtherC2 value:rgb # Use this color to denote a team that has moved in another conference when the other color has already been used
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width:15 textcolor:black shift: anchor:from fontsize:s
bar:1 color:FullxF from:1978 till:1995 text:Ashland
bar:2 color:FullxF from:1978 till:2020 text:Bellarmine
bar:3 color:FullxF from:1978 till:2012 text:Indianapolis
bar:3 color:Full from:2012 till:end
bar:4 color:FullxF from:1978 till:2012 text:Kentucky Wesleyan
bar:4 color:Full from:2012 till:2013
bar:4 color:AssocF from:2013 till:2014 text:
bar:5 color:FullxF from:1978 till:2012 text:Saint Joseph's
bar:5 color:Full from:2012 till:2017
bar:6 color:FullxF from:1978 till:2022 text:Southern Indiana
bar:7 color:FullxF from:1980 till:end text:Lewis
bar:8 color:FullxF from:1984 till:2001 text:IPFW
bar:9 color:FullxF from:1985 till:2012 text:Northern Kentucky
bar:10 color:FullxF from:1989 till:1995 text:Kentucky State
bar:11 color:FullxF from:1995 till:2008 text:SIU–Edwardsville
bar:12 color:FullxF from:1995 till:2012 text:Quincy
bar:12 color:Full from:2012 till:end
bar:13 color:FullxF from:1995 till:2018 text:Wisconsin–Parkside
bar:14 color:FullxF from:1996 till:end text:Missouri–St. Louis
bar:15 color:FullxF from:2005 till:end text:Drury
bar:16 color:FullxF from:2005 till:2012 text:Missouri S&T
bar:16 color:Full from:2012 till:end
bar:17 color:FullxF from:2005 till:end text:Rockhurst
bar:18 color:FullxF from:2009 till:end text:Illinois–Springfield
bar:19 color:FullxF from:2009 till:end text:Maryville
bar:20 color:FullxF from:2011 till:2012 text:William Jewell
bar:20 color:Full from:2012 till:end
bar:21 color:AssocF from:2012 till:2013 text:Central State
bar:22 color:Full from:2012 till:end text:McKendree
bar:23 color:AssocF from:2012 till:2013 text:Urbana
bar:24 color:Full from:2013 till:end text:Truman State
bar:25 color:AssocF from:2014 till:2019 text:Southwest Baptist
bar:25 color:Full from:2019 till:end
bar:26 color:AssocF from:2014 till:2019 text:Lincoln
bar:26 color:AssocOS from:2019 till:2020
bar:26 color:Full from:2024 till:end text:
bar:27 color:AssocOS from:2017 till:2020 text:Alabama–Huntsville
bar:28 color:AssocOS from:2017 till:2020 text:Montevallo
bar:29 color:AssocOS from:2017 till:2019 text:Shorter
bar:30 color:AssocOS from:2017 till:2020 text:Young Harris
bar:31 color:AssocOS from:2018 till:2023 text:Ouachita Baptist
bar:32 color:Full from:2019 till:2022 text:Lindenwood
bar:33 color:AssocOS from:2019 till:2020 text:Lander
bar:34 color:AssocOS from:2019 till:2023 text:Upper Iowa
bar:34 color:Full from:2023 till:end
bar:35 color:AssocOS from:2019 till:end text:Central Missouri
bar:36 color:AssocOS from:2020 till:2024 text:Davenport
bar:36 color:AssocOS from:2025 till:end
bar:37 color:AssocOS from:2020 till:end text:Missouri Western
bar:38 color:AssocOS from:2022 till:end text:Newman
bar:39 shift: color:AssocOS from:2024 till:end text:Oklahoma Christian
bar:40 shift: color:AssocOS from:2025 till:end text:Ferris State
bar:41 shift: color:AssocOS from:2025 till:end text:Grand Valley State
bar:42 shift: color:AssocOS from:2025 till:end text:Jamestown
bar:43 shift: color:AssocOS from:2025 till:end text:Northern Michigan
bar:44 shift: color:AssocOS from:2025 till:end text:Purdue Northwest
bar:45 shift: color:AssocOS from:2025 till:end text:Roosevelt
bar:46 shift: color:AssocOS from:2025 till:2026 text:Thomas More
bar:47 shift: color:AssocOS from:2025 till:end text:Trevecca Nazarene

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<#

Sports sponsorship

Conference sports

The seven sports indicated with a green background were designated "core sports" and required of all full members from 2005 to 2023. Effective fall 2023, all full members are required to sponsor men's and women's basketball, men's and women's soccer, four additional men's sports, and four additional women's sports.
SportMen'sWomen's
Baseball
Basketball
Bowling
Cross Country
Football
Golf
Lacrosse
Soccer
Softball
STUNT
Swimming & Diving
Tennis
Track & Field Indoor
Track & Field Outdoor
Volleyball
Wrestling

Men's conference sports, by school

Departing members in pink.

Women's conference sports, by school

Non-conference NCAA sports, by school

NCAA emerging sports for women

Emerging sports are not yet sponsored by enough NCAA members nationwide to be added to the official list of championship sports.
Drury and Indianapolis both sponsor triathlon, which has had the status of an emerging sport since 2014.
STUNT, an emerging sport from 2023 to January 2026, became a GLVC sport in 2025–26, and becomes an official NCAA championship sport in 2026–27.
No full GLVC member currently sponsors any of the remaining emerging sports: equestrian, flag football, and rugby. Lewis will add flag football in 2026–27. Also, no full member sponsors acrobatics & tumbling, which graduated from the Emerging Sports program to full championship status alongside STUNT, with its first official championship also to be held in 2026–27.

Non-NCAA varsity sports

Some GLVC members give varsity status to teams in non-NCAA sports and to other club teams, such as men's bowling. Other examples are sprint football, a weight-restricted variant of American football, sponsored by Quincy, and the men's and women's ice hockey teams of McKendree and Maryville, which compete at the club level in the American Collegiate Hockey Association. While some GLVC members administer their club sports through their athletics departments, others operate their club sports as student organizations outside of athletics.

Conference facilities

National champions

Since the founding of the conference, members of the GLVC have won 35 NCAA Division II national championships and two NCAA National Collegiate championships. "National Collegiate" is the NCAA's official term to describe championship events open to members of more than one NCAA division.
YearSportSchool
1987Men's basketballKentucky Wesleyan
1990Men's basketballKentucky Wesleyan
1995Men's basketballSouthern Indiana
1999Men's basketballKentucky Wesleyan
2000Women's basketballNorthern Kentucky
2001Men's basketballKentucky Wesleyan
2005Men's swimming & divingDrury
2006Men's swimming & divingDrury
2007Men's swimming & divingDrury
2007Women's swimming & divingDrury
2007SoftballSIU Edwardsville
2008Women's basketballNorthern Kentucky
2008Men's swimming & divingDrury
2009Men's swimming & divingDrury
2009Women's swimming & divingDrury
2010Men's swimming & divingDrury
2010Women's swimming & divingDrury
2010BaseballSouthern Indiana
2010Men's soccerNorthern Kentucky
2011Men's basketballBellarmine
2011Men's swimming & divingDrury
2011Women's swimming & divingDrury
2012Men's swimming & divingDrury
2013Men's basketballDrury
2013Men's swimming & divingDrury
2014Men's swimming & divingDrury
2014BaseballSouthern Indiana
2015Women's golfIndianapolis
2017BowlingMcKendree
2018Women's golfIndianapolis
2018SoftballSouthern Indiana
2021Women's lacrosseLindenwood
2022BowlingMcKendree
2022Women's lacrosseIndianapolis
2023Men's swimming & divingIndianapolis
2024Women's golfIndianapolis
2025Men's swimming & divingDrury @

@ vacated