Great Lakes Valley Conference Chooses Marion For Next 5 years
CONTACT: LINDSEY WILLIAMS, Assistant Commissioner
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 3, 2024
GLVC, Mtn Dew Park Agree to Multi-Year Partnership
INDIANAPOLIS – The Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) has announced an extension to its partnership with Mtn Dew Park to serve as host of the GLVC Baseball Championship Tournament through the 2030 season.
The Marion, Ill., stadium has hosted the Conference tournament the last two years as part of a three-year agreement through 2025 and will now continue in that capacity for the ensuing five seasons. The league’s postseason event spans four days in an eight-team, double-elimination format.
“Signing the extension to keep the GLVC Baseball Championship Tournament at Mtn Dew Park in Marion through 2030 was due to the tremendous support we receive from Ralph Santana and Jackson Wiseman, the facility staff, and the local community,” said GLVC Commissioner Jim Naumovich. “The feedback from the coaches who have participated in the tournament the past two years has all been extremely positive as it relates to the venue and the championship experience for the student-athletes and fans. We are very pleased to have found a great neutral-site home for this event.”
Completed in 2007, the facility can accommodate over 5,000 spectators, including 3,400 chair seats and room for more than 2,000 in a lawn seating area. Additional seating is available in two picnic/group areas, while the Line Drive Bar & Grill has over 300 bar top seats with incredible views of the field. The park also has 14 suites and a banquet facility. The Park was previously home to the Southern Illinois Miners of the Frontier League from 2007-2021.
“Mtn Dew Park’s organization, staff, and team are very excited to welcome back the GLVC Baseball Tournament to Marion on a five-year deal through 2030,” said Wiseman, Assistant General Manager and Director of Entertainment & Operations. “During the past few years, the entire team with the GLVC has been a pleasure to work with. We are very proud to bring such a great tournament to this area for not only the Southern Illinois community, but also the out-of-town guests represented from each participating school. The GLVC brings out great talent and entertaining baseball year in and year out, and again, we are very honored to be part of such a great event.”
ABOUT MTN. DEW PARK
Mtn Dew Park (formerly Rent One Park) in Marion, Illinois, is home to the Thrillville Thrillbillies of the Prospect League, a Summer Collegiate Wood-Bat League. The stadium opened on May 29, 2007, with the Southern Illinois Miners of the Frontier League, which competed until 2021. Mtn Dew Park continues to draw great crowds to the ballpark as a multi-purpose venue for baseball, concerts, soccer, and other entertainment events near the intersection of I-57 and Illinois Route 13.
ABOUT GREAT LAKES VALLEY CONFERENCE (GLVC)
The Great Lakes Valley Conference is one of the premier NCAA Division II conferences, made of 15 member institutions from four Midwest states (Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri) and comprised of 8,000 student-athletes, 64,000 students, and 600,000 alumni. Founded in 1978, the GLVC has grown to sponsor 24 Conference championships – with the 25th coming in 2025-26 in men’s volleyball – and is among the nation’s elite in academic and athletic success. GLVC schools have captured 23 NCAA Division II national championships, including 12 on the men’s side – seven of which are in basketball – and the most recent coming for University of Indianapolis women’s golf team in 2024. Among the 23 NCAA Division II conferences analyzed in the December 2023 report published by the National office, the GLVC ranked fourth in the Federal Graduation Rate (FGR) at 68 percent and tied for fifth in Academic Success Rate (ASR) at 84 percent for all student-athletes. The GLVC is also home to the GLVC Sports Network – the first NCAA Division II conference-wide digital streaming network that launched in 2014. GLVCSN can be found on GLVCSN.com, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, and Roku devices, as well as iOS and Android mobile apps. For more information about the GLVC, visit GLVCsports.com.
