Midwest Conference
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (April 2019) |
 | |
| Association | NCAA |
|---|---|
| Commissioner | Heather Benning (since 2014) |
| Sports fielded |
|
| Division | Division III |
| Region | Upper Midwest |
| Official website | midwestconference.org |
| Locations | |
 | |
The Midwest Conference (MWC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division III. Member institutions are located in the Midwestern United States in the states of Illinois, Iowa, and Wisconsin. The Midwest Conference was created in 1994 with the merger of the Midwest Collegiate Athletic Conference, which had been sponsoring men's sports since 1921, and the Midwest Athletic Conference for Women, which was formed in 1977.
History
The organization of the Midwest Collegiate Athletic Conference (MCAC) was conceived at a meeting at Coe College on May 12, 1921. Charter members were Beloit College, Carleton College, Coe College, Cornell College, Knox College (Illinois) and Lawrence University. Hamline University and Millikin University joined the league in December 1921, but both of them later withdrew: Hamline after the 1929–30 academic year, and Millikin after the 1924–25 academic year.
Ripon College joined the conference in 1923, followed by Monmouth College in 1924, Grinnell College in 1940 and Lake Forest College in 1974. Illinois College and St. Norbert College joined in 1982 and Carroll University followed in 1992. Carleton withdrew following the 1982–83 academic year. St. Olaf College also competed in the conference from 1952 to 74, as did the University of Chicago from 1976 to 1987. Coe and Cornell withdrew following the 1996–97 academic year with Cornell rejoining the league starting in the 2012–13 year. Macalester College joined as a football-only member starting in 2014. The University of Chicago returned as a football-only member in 2017, and added baseball to its conference membership in the 2019 season (2018–19 school year).
The MWC split into North and South divisions for football, men's and women's tennis, baseball, and softball from 2012 through 2016. Divisional play ended with the departure of Carroll after the 2015–16 school year,[1] and resumed for football only with the addition of the University of Chicago as an affiliate member for the 2017–18 season.[2] St. Norbert left in 2021 for the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference.[3]
Member schools
Current members
| Institution | Location | Founded | Joined | Type (all private) |
Enrollment | Nickname | Colors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beloit College | Beloit, Wisconsin | 1846 | 1921 | Nonsectarian | 1,358 | Buccaneers | College Blue & Vegas Gold |
| Cornell College | Mount Vernon, Iowa | 1853 | 1921 2012[a] |
United Methodist | 1,176 | Rams | Purple & White |
| Grinnell College | Grinnell, Iowa | 1846 | 1940 | Nonsectarian | 1,638 | Pioneers | Scarlet & Black |
| Illinois College | Jacksonville, Illinois | 1829 | 1982 | UCC & PCUSA | 1,105 | Blueboys (men's) Lady Blues (women's) |
Blue & White |
| Knox College | Galesburg, Illinois | 1837 | 1921 | Nonsectarian | 1,399 | Prairie Fire | Purple & Gold |
| Lake Forest College | Lake Forest, Illinois | 1857 | 1974 | Nonsectarian | 1,395 | Foresters | Red & Black |
| Lawrence University | Appleton, Wisconsin | 1847 | 1921 | Nonsectarian | 1,489 | Vikings | Blue & White |
| Monmouth College | Monmouth, Illinois | 1853 | 1924 | Presbyterian (PCUSA) | 1,300 | Fighting Scots | Red & White |
| Ripon College | Ripon, Wisconsin | 1851 | 1923 | Nonsectarian | 967 | Red Hawks | Red & White |
- Notes
- ^ Cornell left the Midwest Conference to compete in the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC; now known as the American Rivers Conference) in the 1997–98 school year, and rejoined the MWC for the 2012–13 school year.
Affiliate members
| Institution | Location | Founded | Joined | Type | Enrollment | Nickname | MWC sport | Primary conference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Chicago | Chicago, Illinois | 1890 | 2017–18 (football) 2018–19 (baseball) |
Private | 13,400 | Maroons | football, baseball |
UAA |
- Notes
- Chicago had been a full conference member from 1976–77 to 1986–87.
Former members
| Institution | Location | Founded | Joined | Left | Type | Enrollment | Nickname | Current conference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carleton College | Northfield, Minnesota | 1866 | 1921 | 1983 | Private | 2,105 | Knights | MIAC |
| Carroll University | Waukesha, Wisconsin | 1846 | 1992 | 2016 | Private/Presbyterian (PCUSA) | 2,789 | Pioneers | CCIW |
| University of Chicago | Chicago, Illinois | 1890 | 1976 | 1987 | Private | 13,400 | Maroons | UAA |
| Coe College | Cedar Rapids, Iowa | 1851 | 1921 | 1997 | Private/Presbyterian (PCUSA) | 1,355 | Kohawks | ARC |
| Hamline University | St. Paul, Minnesota | 1854 | 1922 | 1930 | Private/Methodist | 1,944 | Pipers | MIAC |
| Millikin University | Decatur, Illinois | 1901 | 1922 | 1925 | Private/Presbyterian (PCUSA) | 2,200 | Big Blue | CCIW |
| St. Norbert College | De Pere, Wisconsin | 1898 | 1982 | 2021 | Private/Catholic (Premonstratensians) | 2,095 | Green Knights | NACC |
| St. Olaf College | Northfield, Minnesota | 1874 | 1952 | 1974 | Private/Lutheran (ELCA) | 2,900 | Oles | MIAC |
Former affiliate members
| Institution | Location | Founded | Joined | Left | Type | Enrollment | Nickname | MWC sport | Primary conference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Macalester College | Saint Paul, Minnesota | 1874 | 2014 | 2021 | Private | 2,221 | Scots | football | MIAC |
Membership timeline
Sports
As of 2021[update], the MWC sponsors the following sports:
| Sport | Men's | Women's |
|---|---|---|
| Baseball |  |
|
| Basketball | |
|
| Cross country | |
|
| Football | |
|
| Golf | |
|
| Indoor track | |
|
| Outdoor track | |
|
| Soccer | |
|
| Softball | | |
| Swimming & Diving | |
|
| Tennis | |
|
| Volleyball | |
Conference facilities
| School | Football field | Capacity | Basketball arena | Capacity | Baseball field |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beloit | Strong Stadium | 3,000 | Flood Arena | 2,500 | Ballpark at Strong Stadium |
| Chicago | Stagg Field | 1,650 | Member only in football and baseball | J. Kyle Anderson Field | |
| Cornell | Ash Park Stadium | 2,500 | Multi-Sport Center | 2,000 | Ash Park Field |
| Grinnell | Rosenbloom Field | 5,000 | Darby Gym | 1,250 | Grinnell Baseball Diamond |
| Illinois College | England Stadium | 3,000 | Sherman Gymnasium | 1,600 | Joe Brooks Field |
| Knox | Knosher Bowl | 4,000 | Memorial Gym | 3,000 | Blodgett Field |
| Lake Forest | Farwell Field | 1,000 | Lake Forest Sports Center | 1,200 | No Baseball Team |
| Lawrence | Banta Bowl | 5,255 | Alexander Gym | 1,280 | Whiting Field |
| Macalester | Macalester Stadium | 4,000 | Football-only member | ||
| Monmouth | Bobby Woll Memorial Field | 2,000 | Glennie Gymnasium | 1,600 | Glasgow Field |
| Ripon | Ingalls Field | 3,500 | Storzer Gymnasium | 1,000 | Francis Field |
See also
References
- ^ "Carroll University leaving Midwest Conference for CCIW". www.jsonline.com.
- ^ "Football Season Preview". Midwest Conference. Retrieved 2017-08-30.
- ^ "NACC Welcomes St. Norbert College as Full Member in 2020-21" (Press release). Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference. April 3, 2019. Retrieved April 14, 2019.