Taking On the Southland ConferenceIt’s a great time to be an Islander.
Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi achieved a major milestone last September with its acceptance into the Southland Conference. Membership in the Southland Conference, now in its fifth decade, means a new, elevated status for the entire Islander athletics program.
Eight years after NCAA sports were revived at the University, A&M-Corpus Christi’s Southland Conference membership is an immense opportunity not only for the athletic program and the University but also for the entire Coastal Bend community. Membership means the arrival of good, old-fashioned rivalries between the University and its formidable new competition across Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana.
The Islander women’s basketball team is coming off a school-best 23-7 record that included a first-ever trip to the Women’s National Invitation Tournament in 2005.By joining the Southland Conference, the University can now earn qualification into the NCAA championships. It can also garner “Player of the Week” honors for both men and women student athletes. Attendance at Islander games is expected to increase, and perhaps by 2010, when enrollment is projected to reach 10,000 students, the University could see the addition of Islander football.
The Southland Conference sponsors 17 championship sports at the NCAA Division I level. Membership also earns a school automatic eligibility for NCAA championships in football, men’s and women’s basketball, baseball, softball, volleyball, men’s golf, men’s and women’s track and field, men’s and women’s tennis, and women’s soccer.
Currently, the University competes in 14 varsity sports, including men’s and women’s basketball, volleyball, softball, baseball, men’s and women’s tennis, women’s golf, men’s and women’s cross country, and men’s and women’s indoor/outdoor track and field.
The Islander softball team won three Big South Conference softball titles.The men’s tennis team previously participated in the Southland Conference as an affiliate member and has won two Southland championships. The softball program has captured three straight Big South Conference titles.
Beginning July 2006 the University will compete against 11 Southland member institutions across Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana. Other Texas institutions include the University of Texas at San Antonio, the University of Texas at Arlington, Texas State University in San Marcos, Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Sam Houston State University in Huntsville and Lamar University in Beaumont.
The University’s addition to the Southland Conference marks the first expansion of the organization since 1998. On the same day the University gained acceptance into the Southland Conference, the University of Central Arkansas also became a member.
Louisiana schools that are already members of the Southland Conference include McNeese State University in Lake Charles, the University of Louisiana at Monroe, Nicholls State University in Thibodaux, Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond and Northwestern State University in Natchitoches.
By the Numbers Texas A&M University-
Corpus Christi joins the Southland ConferenceNumber of varsity sports currently
supported at
A&M-Corpus ChristiNumber of Southland Conference members in Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas
Number of Southland Conference titles
already won by the Islanders men’s
tennis teamRaul Morant Rivas became the first Islander tennis player to advance to the Intercollegiate Tennis Association National Championships. President's Report
2006
