EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Men’s Soccer will be joining the Ohio Valley Conference for the upcoming season league officials announced Tuesday. This will be the first season for men’s soccer in the OVC, the conference will consist of four current members as well as four affiliate members.

The Screaming Eagles will join current OVC members Eastern Illinois University, Lindenwood University, and Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville in the inaugural season. EIU and Lindenwood joined USI in the Summit League last season while SIUE competed in the Missouri Valley Conference.

SIUE was the most successful of the four teams last season, finishing 5-9-2, finishing sixth in the MVC. Lindenwood finished with the most wins of the three Summit League schools, 3-11-1, while USI finished above both in the final standings with a record of 2-12-3. EIU finished last season 1-12-3.

The four affiliate members that will be joining the OVC will include Chicago State University, Houston Christian University, University of Incarnate Word, and Liberty University.

HCU was the most successful of the four new members, finishing ninth in the Western Athletic Conference with a 5-8-6 record. Liberty finished last season 3-6-6 and finished seventh in the Atlantic Sun Conference. UIW finished last season with a 2-13-1 record as an independent. CSU ended last season fifth in the Mid-American Conference with a 1-13-3 record.

USI finished last season with a 1-3-1 record against the new OVC field. The Eagles recorded their first NCAA Division I win since 1994 against EIU while also earning a draw with CSU. USI fell to Lindenwood twice and SIUE once.