Lincoln University is leaving the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association.
At a press conference this morning at Jason Hall, it was announced Lincoln is joining the Great Lakes Valley Conference starting with the 2024-25 school year. Lincoln had previously been a football-only member of the GLVC from 2014-18.
Lincoln has been a full-time member of the MIAA for more than 40 years -- 1970-99 and again from 2010 to the present.
In addition, Lincoln is bringing back baseball and men’s soccer and will start women’s soccer. The baseball team will play at Vivion Field. The soccer teams could play at Dwight T. Reed Stadium, but there is the possibility of adding an on-campus soccer facility.
All three sports will begin operation this fall but will not begin playing opponents until the 2024-25 school year. Head-coaching searches will begin in the next few months for a baseball head coach and a director of soccer, who will serve as head coach of both programs.
Lincoln will then offer 14 total sports -- baseball, men’s and women’s basketball, women’s cross country, football, men’s and women’s golf, men’s and women’s indoor track and field, men’s and women’s outdoor track and field, men’s and women’s soccer, and softball.
It was also announced Lincoln will not play an MIAA football schedule this fall, but may play MIAA teams as a non-conference opponent. Lincoln is in the process of finalizing its revised football schedule, with an eye toward adding fellow Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
Lincoln will be one of 15 universities in the GLVC. Missouri schools in the conference include Drury, Maryville, Missouri S&T, Missouri-St. Louis, Rockhurst, Southwest Baptist, Truman State and William Jewell. The other members are Illinois-Springfield, University of Indianapolis, Lewis University (Romeoville, Ill.), McKendree (Lebanon, Ill.), Quincy (Ill.) University and Upper Iowa University.
Upper Iowa announced in November it was joining the GLVC as a full-time member.