Jan. 31, 2009

Great West Conference Adds Two for 2010 Baseball

There are currently 16 independents in NCAA Division I baseball. That number will be cut in half in 2010.

The Great West has added New York Tech and Northern Colorado as associate members for baseball for the 2009-10 academic year, the league announced.

The pair will join Chicago State, Houston Baptist, New Jersey Tech, North Dakota, Texas-Pan American and Utah Valley as Great West baseball schools.

The 2010 conference slate will begin the weekend of April 9-11 and compete each weekend through May 20-22. The teams will play four-game series over three days against each league opponent, making a 28-game conference schedule. The first Great West baseball championship will be held May 26-29 at Texas-Pan American.

The Great West began as a football conference in 2004 with Cal Poly, UC Davis, North Dakota State, Northern Colorado, South Dakota State and Southern Utah. North Dakota State and South Dakota State left for the Missouri Valley Football League. North Dakota and South Dakota joined the football league in 2008. The Great West added schools and sports this past summer. Houston Baptist, New Jersey Tech, Texas-Pan American and Utah Valley joined North Dakota and South Dakota as new members in 2008. Championships during the 2008-09 academic year include men and women’s cross country, men and women’s indoor and outdoor track and field, and men and women’s golf. Next year, the Great West will add baseball, basketball, soccer, softball, tennis and volleyball as conference sports.