UALR female swim team joins Missouri Valley Conference

By Aaron Graff

 

The Missouri Valley Conference commissioner, Doug Elgin, has announced the University of Arkansas at Little Rock women’s swim team, has joined the conference as an affiliate.

UALR coach Amy Burgess said the team was in the Sun Belt conference before switching, and it was almost forced to switch conferences because of other swim teams leaving for other conferences.

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“We are super excited and very honored to be a part of (the MVC),” Burgess said. “It is a good move for us geography wise and it is a little more fitting for us on the competitive side.”

Saluki coach Rick Walker said he was in favor of UALR joining to better competition in the conference.

“Another team in the mix is really a good thing for the Missouri Valley,” he said.

Walker said UALR does have some strong individual swimmers, but the competition of the MVC is overall more fitting to them than the Sun Belt conference.

“They actually will have competition at the level where they are coming in,” Walker said. “It is not only going to make them better, but it is going to make the teams they are coming in and challenging better.”

Senior Kristy Hinkle said she is glad UALR is joining because the MVC can have a better name as a whole, and makes every win more glorified against more competition.

“It adds more competition to our conference,” Hinkle said. “It makes us bigger and gives us the chance to prove who we are and who we can be.”

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Burgess said the swimmers of UALR are excited to compete in the conference, and they will be more competitive in a more fitting environment.

“We are going to have a lot more opportunities with the Missouri Valley and it gets them excited and a little more competitive,” Burgess said.

SIU will compete at UALR Jan. 18, and will see them again at the conference championships Feb. 13-15 in Carbondale.

Aaron Graff can be contacted at [email protected] 

or 536-3311 ext. 282.

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