Southern Illinoise University Athletics
SIU to host MVC Softball and Swimming and Diving Championships
06/01/2015 | 12:00:00 | Swimming & Diving
ST. LOUIS - Commissioner Doug Elgin has announced a list of dates and sites for the various Missouri Valley Conference sports championships for the 2015-16 athletic season. Southern Illinois will host the MVC Swimming and Diving and Softball Championships in 2015-16. The Swimming and Diving Championship will take place Feb. 17-20 in Dr. Edward J. Shea Natatorium, and the MVC Softball Championship will take place May 12-14 in Charlotte West Stadium.
These site awards were approved by the league's Joint Committee (faculty athletics representatives, directors of athletics and senior woman administrators of each institution) and are subject to ratification at the MVC Presidents' Council meeting on June 7-8.
The league previously announced its sites for men's and women's basketball. The MVC Men's Basketball Championship -- the 26th consecutive men's tournament in St. Louis -- will feature all 10 Missouri Valley Conference schools and will be played at Scottrade Center. For the 11th-straight year, the tournament will begin on Thursday and end on Sunday (March 3-6). All nine games will be televised, and the championship game will be carried on CBS Sports.
For the first time, the MVC Women's Basketball Championship will be played in the Quad Cities (at the iWireless Center in Moline, Ill.) It will mark the ninth-straight neutral-site championship for women's basketball in the MVC after having spent the past eight years in St. Charles, Mo. The championship features all 10 Missouri Valley Conference schools and will begin on Thursday and end on Sunday (March 10-13). All nine games will be on ESPN3.
SOFTBALL: The 2016 MVC Softball Championship will be played at Charlotte West Stadium in Carbondale, Ill. Southern Illinois will host the tournament, which will be played May 12-14. The tournament champion receives an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The MVC Softball Championship has featured eight teams in a single-elimination format, with the top two seeds receiving byes to the semifinals. All seven games will air on ESPN3. Since opening in March 2003, Charlotte West Stadium has served as the host of the MVC Softball Championship three times (2004, 2008 and 2012). It also played host to the NCAA Regionals in 2007. The state-of-the-art facility holds 502 fans. Indiana State won this year's softball tournament crown and represented the MVC in the NCAA Championship.
WOMEN'S SOCCER: The 2015 MVC Women's Soccer Championship will be at Evansville, Ind., and Evansville will host the event at Arad McCutchan Stadium, on Nov. 6-8. The top six teams (of seven) advance to the championship, and the top two seeds receive a first-round bye. First-round games are on campus sites - Sunday, Nov. 1. The semifinals are Friday, Nov. 6, and the championship is Sunday, Nov. 8. The semifinals and final will air on ESPN3. The winner of the tournament receives an automatic bid to the 2015 NCAA Women's Soccer Championship. Last season, Illinois State won both the regular-season and MVC tournament titles and represented the MVC in the NCAAs, advancing to the second round for a second-straight year. McCutchan Stadium opened as an exclusive soccer venue in 2000 and most recently hosted the MVC Women's Championship in 2013. The 2,500-seat stadium features an enclosed press box and locker rooms.
MEN'S SOCCER: The 2015 MVC Men's Soccer Championship will be in Edwardsville, Ill., and will be played at Ralph Korte Stadium (Bob Guelker Field) on Nov. 11-13-15. SIUE will host. The tournament is a Wednesday-Friday-Sunday format, with six (of seven) teams advancing to the championship. The opening round will be played Wednesday, the semifinals on Friday, and the championship match on Sunday, Nov. 15. The winner of the tournament receives an automatic bid to the 2015 NCAA Men's Soccer Championship. All five matches will be on ESPN3.
Ralph Korte Stadium has an artificial turf surface and can accommodate seating for 4,000 fans. The stadium opened in 1994 and was first used during the U.S. Olympic Festival that year. It has since been the site for numerous local, regional, state, national, professional and international soccer events. SIUE becomes the first men's soccer affiliate to host the MVC Championship, although preliminary-round games have been played at affiliate member sites previously (most recently in 2004, when SMU hosted Vanderbilt in a first-round MVC tournament game). In 2014, SIUE represented The Valley in the NCAA Tournament, advancing to the second round.
VOLLEYBALL: The 2015 MVC Volleyball Championship will be in Springfield, Mo., at Hammons Student Center. The tournament will be held on Thanksgiving weekend, Nov. 26-28, with the winner receiving an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The league's top six teams advance to the single-site championship tournament, and all five matches will be on ESPN3. Last year, top-seeded Illinois State represented the Missouri Valley Conference in the NCAAs after winning the title, and the Redbirds advanced to the second round. Missouri State, which finished fourth in the regular season last year, last hosted the MVC Volleyball Championship in 2012.
TENNIS: The 2016 MVC Men's and Women's Tennis Team Championship will be in Wichita, Kan., and Wichita State will serve as host. The championship will be played April 29-30, May 1. Home to the WSU tennis program since September 1993, the Sheldon Coleman Tennis Complex features eight lighted tennis courts with spectator seating and a 2,500-square-foot-clubhouse. Drake's men and Wichita State's women won this year's MVC tennis titles and represented the league in the NCAA Championships.
BASEBALL: The 2016 MVC Baseball Championship will be played at Bob Warn Field at Sycamore Stadium in Terre Haute, Ind. Indiana State will host the tournament, which will be played May 25-28. The tournament champion receives an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The 2016 MVC Baseball Championship will feature all eight teams and all games will be aired on ESPN3. ISU last hosted the baseball championship in 2014. Bob Warn Field features a FieldTurf infield and natural grass outfield and has a total of 2,000 chairback and bleacher seats. Several amenities have been added in the past few years, including new dugouts, bullpen mounds and a renovated press area. This year, for the sixth time in league history, three MVC baseball teams were selected as part of the field of 64 teams to play for the 2015 College World Series national title (Bradley, Dallas Baptist and Missouri State). Missouri State earned a No. 8 national seed and has advanced to a Super Regional against Arkansas.
Other hosts for league championships in 2015-16 include Bradley (women's individual tennis); Evansville (men's and women's cross country); Indiana State (men's and women's outdoor track & field); Loyola (women's golf); UNI (men's and women's indoor track & field); Southern Illinois (women's swimming & diving); and Wichita State (men's golf).
