Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association

About

The Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (MIVA) is a college athletic conference whose member schools compete in men's volleyball, holding the distinction of being the nation's first men's college volleyball league. The conference was founded on February 4, 1961, when representatives from eight institutions met in Lansing, Michigan, largely through the efforts of Jim Coleman of Wittenberg College and Don Shondell of Ball State University. Over its history, more than 40 schools from Divisions I, II, and III have participated as MIVA members. The conference currently fields nine teams spanning the Midwestern United States, stretching from Missouri in the west to Ohio in the east, and extending into Kentucky and North Carolina. The MIVA Tournament champion receives an automatic bid to the NCAA National Collegiate Men's Volleyball Championship. Ohio State has been the conference's most successful program with 47 combined regular season and tournament titles, followed by Ball State with 39 and Loyola Chicago with 12. Ohio State has won five NCAA national championships as a MIVA member (2011, 2016, 2017, and tournament titles in 2023 and 2024), while Loyola Chicago has claimed two (2014 and 2015) and the most recent tournament title in 2025. The conference's newest member, Northern Kentucky University, began varsity men's volleyball play in 2026.