The Truman Athletics Department became the 16th member of the Great Lakes Valley Conference, which became official today, following a century-long partnership with the MIAA.
GLVC History & General Information
The GLVC was established in 1978 when six schools – five from Indiana and one from Ohio – united to form the new league. Throughout the years, 16 different institutions have joined the league, while six have departed for either the NCAA Div. I level or other NCAA Div. II conferences. The resulting realignment has resulted in seven schools residing in the state of Missouri – a league-high – with four others holding residence in Illinois. Three Indiana programs, and one apiece from both Wisconsin and Kentucky round out the current 16-team conference.
The conference sponsors 20 championships in baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, soccer, swimming, indoor and outdoor track & field, and tennis for men and basketball, cross country, softball, soccer, swimming, tennis, indoor and outdoor track & field, golf, and volleyball for women. Truman will field teams for 19 of those 20 championships, with wrestling remaining an affiliate member of the MIAA to compete in its league championship.
League members have won national championships in five sports, with a dozen coming on the hardwood. In addition to men’s and women’s basketball championships, GLVC members have captured national championships in men’s soccer, baseball and softball.
The conference is headquartered in Indianapolis, led by Commissioner Jim Naumovich, who has served in that capacity since 2000. He previously spent 15 years at league-member Quincy (Ill.) University, where he was the athletic director from 1992-2000.
GLVC League Membership / NCAA Affiliation
Truman’s membership keeps the GLVC at 16 teams, as the Bulldogs are replacing Kentucky Wesleyan College with the July 1 changeover. The Panthers are departing the Great Lakes Valley to join the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (GMAC), where they will be a charter member of the primarily West Virginia- and Ohio-based league.
Truman becomes the seventh league member west of the Mississippi River, joining fellow Missouri schools:
· Drury (Springfield)
· Maryville (St. Louis)
· Missouri S&T (Rolla)
· Missouri-St. Louis
· Rockhurst (Kansas City)
· William Jewell (Liberty)
The Bulldogs will also face four programs from Illinois:
· Illinois-Springfield
· Lewis (Romeoville)
· McKendree (Lebanon)
· Quincy
Three Indiana programs…:
· Indianapolis
· Saint Joseph’s (Rensselaer)
· Southern Indiana (Evansville)
…and one each from Wisconsin and Kentucky round out the league map:
· Bellarmine (Louisville, Kentucky)
· Wisconsin-Parkside (Kenosha, Wisconsin)
