2 - Creighton University Bluejays

Missouri Valley Conference
From its early beginning to its current standing on the
map of college athletics, the Missouri Valley Conference
continues to be proactive in its approach as it enters its
104th year in 2010-11. The nation’s second-oldest NCAA
Division I conference is a leader in college athletics and
one of the nation’s most progressive conferences.
The Missouri Valley Conference enters a new decade
facing a rapidly changing environment in NCAA Division I
athletics as conference expansion and realignment swept
the nation in the summer of 2010. Although The Valley
was untouched, the league will remain vigilant in monitoring
changes or potential changes in other conferences
that might impact membership, or present opportunities
for expansion.
Men’s basketball continues to be the engine that drives
Valley athletic programs. With UNI’s NCAA Sweet 16
appearance in 2010, the league has had four different
Sweet 16 teams since 2006, and The Valley is the only
non-BCS league with more than two different Sweet 16
teams in that span. Notably, a run of nine straight seasons
with two or more teams in the NCAAs ended in
2007, as the past three seasons have seen only the tournament
champion included in the NCAA field.
Last year, UNI swept both the regular season and
State Farm MVC Tournament titles, earning the Valley’s
lone NCAA Tournament berth in the process. The
Panthers escaped with a 69-66 victory over UNLV in the
NCAA’s opening round. UNI then became the first MVC
team to beat a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament since
Cincinnati beat top-ranked Ohio State in the NCAA championship
game in 1962, when it toppled No. 1-seeded
Kansas 69-67. Ali Farokhmanesh’s key field goals in the
final moments of both tournament games sealed those
victories and the Panthers finished with a school-record
30 wins (30-5), losing to Michigan State in the Sweet 16
in St. Louis.
Notably, The Valley made history in March 2007 with
record attendance for four days at St. Louis’ Scottrade
Center as 85,074 fans turned out to watch the five sessions
of the tournament. The two sellout crowds of
22,612 for the semifinals and final of the 2007 State Farm
Tournament set an all-time attendance record for basketball
at the arena and also gave The Valley the distinction
of having the largest championship crowd of any of the 30
NCAA conference tournaments in 2007. The State Farm
MVC Tournament continues to be a spectacular showcase
for the league, and the MVC has extended the tournament
agreement with the Scottrade Center that will
keep Arch Madness in St. Louis through 2013. At the
2011 State Farm MVC Championship, the league will surpass
one million in total attendance for the event, now in
its 21st year.
In women’s basketball, the MVC matched a leaguehigh
tying six teams earning post-season berths; 2010
marked the 11th straight season that The Valley earned at
least three post-season bids. The conference remains
committed to keeping the tournament at a neutral site at
the Family Arena in St. Charles, Mo., as establishing a
neutral site remains a huge part of the overall efforts to
improve women’s basketball in The Valley.
In volleyball, for the sixth time in league history, two
MVC teams were invited to dance in the 2009 NCAA
Volleyball Championship – UNI and Wichita State. With
first-round wins over Washington State and Saint Louis,
respectively, it marked just the second time in MVC history
that two teams advanced to the second round of the
NCAA Tournament in the same season (2006 – Missouri
State and UNI).
In softball, the MVC returned to its multi-bid status after
a one-year hiatus, sending two teams – Creighton and
Illinois State – to the NCAA Tournament. The 2010 campaign
marked the seventh time in eight seasons that The
Valley has placed multiple teams into the NCAA field.
In men’s soccer, for the 13th time in league history, at
least two MVC teams were invited to dance in the 2009
NCAA Men’s Soccer Championship – Drake and Missouri
State. The Bulldogs won their first league tournament
championship and saw their magical run end in the NCAA
Elite Eight, falling to No. 4 North Carolina, 2-1. The 2009
campaign marked the third straight season, and the ninth
time in the past 10 years, that a Valley men’s soccer team
advanced to at least the Quarterfinal Round of the NCAA
Championship.
During the tenure of Doug Elgin, The Valley’s ninth and
longest-tenured commissioner, The Valley has been
aggressive in hosting NCAA events in St. Louis. Since
1998, the MVC served as host for a staggering nine
NCAA tournament events in the 13-year period, which
has made St. Louis one of the most frequent stops on the
NCAA Tournament trail. The Valley hosted Women’s Final
Fours in 2001 and 2009, and the Men’s Final Four in
2005.
The seeds for the creation of the conference were
planted by eight administrators representing five institutions,
who met at the Midland Hotel in Kansas City, Mo.,
on Jan. 12, 1907. The five schools which formed the
Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association were
Washington University of St. Louis, and the state universities
of Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska. Two
months after the initial meeting, two more schools --
Drake University and Iowa State College -- were admitted.
In the fall of 1907, basketball became the first competitive
sport. Today, the Missouri Valley Conference sponsors
the following sports: baseball, men's and women's
basketball, men's and women's cross country and track
and field (indoor and outdoor), men's and women's golf,
men's and women's soccer, softball, women's swimming
and diving, men's and women's tennis and women's volleyball.
Athletic accomplishments on the men’s athletics side
include 14 national basketball championships, 16 trips to
the NCAA Final Four, a 1989 national baseball championship
and 19 College World Series qualifiers. In 2010,
Missouri State’s men’s basketball program won the
CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament, the
league’s first national title in men’s basketball since 1982
(Bradley, NIT). In 2001, Missouri State added to The
Valley women’s accomplishments, as the Lady Bears
advanced to the Women’s Basketball Final Four in St.
Louis. Creighton (2004) and Missouri State (2005) have
claimed national championships (WNIT) in women’s basketball,
while MSU also has a 1992 NCAA Women’s Final
Four appearance, and Creighton (2003), Drake (1999)
and Illinois State (2009) have made semifinal trips to the
WNIT postseason tournament. Indeed, the inclusion of
women’s programs under The Valley banner has provided
a boost. The Gateway Collegiate Athletic Conference
– which began in 1982 – merged with the Missouri Valley
Conference and was unveiled as part of the new conference
on July 1, 1992.
While the inclusion of women’s sports under a comprehensive
athletic umbrella is a recent development in
the league’s storied history, over the years, Valley student-athletes
and coaches have become household
names during the league's illustrious history, both during
their collegiate careers and, for some, professional
careers.
In fact, The Valley began honoring that tradition in the
summer of 1997, when the conference began its athletics
Hall of Fame. Hersey Hawkins of Bradley, Larry Bird of
Indiana State, Wes Unseld of Louisville, Coach Henry Iba
of Oklahoma State, Dave Stallworth of Wichita State, Ed
Macauley of Saint Louis, and Oscar Robertson of
Cincinnati were members of the initial induction class.
Currently, more than 60 former players, coaches and
alumni dot the league’s Hall of Fame.
In the fall of 1997, Creighton’s Johnny Torres was
named the collegiate male soccer player of the year for a
second straight year, while SMU’s Luchi Gonzalez (2001)
and Tulsa’s Ryan Pore (2004) have also earned a
National Player of the Year honor in men’s soccer.
Meanwhile league member Wichita State has produced
three national collegiate players of the year in baseball,
including Joe Carter (1981), Phil Stephenson (1982) and
Darren Dreifort (1993).
League members include Bradley, Creighton, Drake,
Evansville, Illinois State, Indiana State, Missouri State,
Northern Iowa, Southern Illinois, and Wichita State.
Central Arkansas and Southern Illinois-Edwardsville are
men’s soccer affiliates, beginning in 2010.
65
1818 Chouteau Ave.
St. Louis, MO 63103
Phone: (314) 421-0339
Fax: (314) 421-0620
www.mvc.org
MVC Staff
Doug Elgin - Commissioner
Patty Viverito - Sr. Associate Commissioner
Joe Mitch - Associate Commissioner
Jack Watkins - Associate Commissioner for
Marketing and Television
Mike Kern - Associate Commissioner for
Communications
Mary Mulvenna - Assistant Commissioner for
Compliance
Kelli Briscoe - Director of Communications &
Sports Administration
Kristin Gregory - Assistant Director of
Communications & Sports
Derrick Docket - Director of New Media &
Technology
Rich Steed - Chief Financial Officer
Lori Brutton - Asst. to Chief Financial Officer
Maxine Day - Executive Assistant
Carla Fight - Assistant to the Commissioner
2010-11 Championships
Oct. 8-10 Individual Tennis (W) - Normal, Ill.
Oct. 30 Cross Country (M/W) - Wichita, Kan.
Nov. 5-7 Soccer (W) - Omaha, Neb.
Nov. 10-14 Soccer (M) - Peoria, Ill.
Nov. 25-27 Volleyball - Wichita, Kan.
Jan. 21-23 Individual Tennis (M) - Des Moines, Iowa
Feb. 17-19 Swimming & Diving (W) - Carbondale, Ill.
Feb. 26-27 Indoor Track & Field (M/W) -
Cedar Falls, Iowa
Mar. 3-6 MVC Basketball (M) - St. Louis, Mo.
Mar. 10-13 MVC Basketball (W) - St. Charles, Mo.
April 22-23 Golf (W) - Normal, Ill.
April 25-26 Golf (M) - Lake of the Ozarks, Mo.
A29-M1 Tennis (M/W) - St. Louis, Mo.
May 12-14 Softball - Springfield, Mo.
May 13-15 Outdoor Track & Field (M/W) -
Cedar Falls, Iowa
May 24-28 Baseball - Omaha, Neb.
League Schools
Bradley www.bradleybraves.com
Creighton www.gocreighton.com
Drake
www.godrakebulldogs.com
Evansville www.gopurpleaces.com
Illinois State www.goredbirds.com
Indiana State www.gosycamores.com
Missouri State www.missouristatebears.com
Northern Iowa www.unipanthers.com
Southern Illinois www.siusalukis.com
Wichita State www.goshockers.com
Doug Elgin
Commissioner
Kelli Briscoe
Women’s Baskeball SID