Loyola Ramblers Explained

Loyola Ramblers
University:Loyola University Chicago
Conference:Atlantic 10 Conference (primary)
MIVA (men's volleyball)
Association:NCAA
Division:Division I
Director:Steve Watson
Location:Chicago, Illinois
Teams:15 (7 men’s and 8 women’s)
Basketballarena:Joseph J. Gentile Arena
Soccerstadium:Loyola Soccer Park
Mascot:LU Wolf
Nickname:Ramblers
Fightsong:Hail Loyola!
Pageurl:http://www.loyolaramblers.com/

The Loyola Ramblers (also called the Loyola Chicago Ramblers) are the varsity sports teams of Loyola University Chicago. Most teams compete in the Atlantic 10 Conference, which the school joined in 2022 after leaving the Missouri Valley Conference. They previously played in the Horizon League.[1] Notable athletes from Loyola have included middle-distance runner Tom O'Hara, volleyball player Thomas Jaeschke, and basketball players Mike Novak, Jerry Harkness, Les Hunter, Wayne Sappleton, Alfredrick Hughes, LaRue Martin, and Blake Schilb. The nickname "Ramblers" was first used in 1926.[2] The Loyola Ramblers departed from the Missouri Valley Conference and joined the Atlantic 10 Conference effective July 1, 2022.[3]

Conference affiliation history

Loyola Chicago was a charter member of the Midwestern City Conference when it was established on June 16, 1979. The intercollegiate athletic circuit eventually rebranded twice, first as the Midwestern Collegiate Conference in 1985 and then the Horizon League on June 4, 2001.[4] The university announced on April 12, 2013 that it was leaving the Horizon League to replace Creighton as the tenth member of the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) beginning months later on July 1.[5] Prior to the conclusion of its nine years in the MVC, the Ramblers were accepted by the Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10) on November 16, 2021 as its 15th member beginning July 1, 2022.[6] The women's golf team competes in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC).[7]

Sports sponsored

Basketball
Cross country Cross country
Golf Golf
Soccer
Track and field Softball
Track and field
Volleyball
A member of the Atlantic 10 Conference, Loyola University Chicago sponsors teams in seven men's and eight women's NCAA sanctioned sports.

Football was discontinued at Loyola after the 1930 season.[8] The university had previosuly fielded a varsity football team intermittently from 1892-1930.

National championships

Men's baseball

Phil Weintraub, later a Major League Baseball player, played for the Loyola baseball team.

Men's basketball

See main article: Loyola Ramblers men's basketball. Loyola Ramblers men's basketball has played at the Joseph J. Gentile Arena since 1996; before then, they played home games at Alumni Gym. The 1962–1963 team, led by coach George Ireland, won the 1963 NCAA University Division basketball tournament (predecessor to the current Division I men's tournament), defeating the University of Cincinnati 60–58 in the title game. Vic Rouse tipped in the winning bucket in overtime to win the game. During their tournament run, the Ramblers also won a historically notable game against Mississippi State, an all-white team that defied a state court order in order to play said game. The Ramblers made it back to the regional semifinals the following year and qualified for the tournament in 1966 and 1968. They would not make the national tournament again until 1985, in which they lost to eventual tournament runner-up Georgetown in the Sweet Sixteen. In 2018, the Ramblers returned to the tournament for the first time in 33 years. As a No. 11 seed, they upset No. 6 seed Miami (FL) and No. 3 seed Tennessee to qualify for the Sweet Sixteen. They faced Nevada in the regional semifinal and defeated the Wolf Pack 69-68 to advance to the Elite 8 against Kansas State. They advanced to the Final Four by beating Kansas State 78-62. In the Final Four, they lost to Michigan 69-57.

Loyola made it to the finals of the National Invitation Tournament in 1939 and 1949 and qualified for 1962 and 1980 tournaments. They won the College Basketball Invitational in 2015.

Men's volleyball

See main article: Loyola Ramblers men's volleyball. Loyola Ramblers men's volleyball was coached by Loyola alumnus Shane Davis. His record through twelve seasons is 265–88 .[12]

Now they are coached by Mark Hulse.

In 2013, the Ramblers were defeated by the UCI Anteaters 0–3 (24–26, 18–25, 27–29) in the first semifinal of the NCAA championships on May 2, 2013 at UCLA's Pauley Pavilion. This was the team's first appearance ever in an NCAA men's collegiate volleyball tournament.[13]

On May 3, 2014, Loyola, playing host to the 2014 Championships, defeated the Stanford Cardinal 3-1 to win the program's first-ever NCAA Men's National Collegiate Volleyball Championship.[14]

Loyola successfully defended their championship in 2015, defeating Lewis 3-2 at Stanford's Maples Pavilion.[15]

Facilities

1996 2011 Basketball
Volleyball
4,486
Loyola Soccer Park 1996 2000, 2005, 2007 Soccer 500
Loyola Softball Park 1997 2000, 2005, 2007 Softball 500
Norville Center for Intercollegiate Athletics 2011 Training center
The Alfie Norville Practice Facility 2019 Training center
Loyola does not have local competition sites for cross country, golf, or track and field.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Loyola Joins Missouri Valley Conference Loyola University Chicago Official Athletic Site . CBS Interactive . 2015-04-24.
  2. Web site: Loyola University Chicago Digital Special Collections Why Ramblers? · Loyola Traditions. www.lib.luc.edu. en-US. 2018-03-31.
  3. Web site: Mikula. Jeremy. Loyola is moving to the Atlantic 10 Conference in July after nearly a decade in the Missouri Valley. 2021-11-16. chicagotribune.com.
  4. https://horizonleague.org/sports/2017/9/5/GEN_0905170006.aspx About Us  - Horizon League.
  5. https://loyolaphoenix.com/2013/04/missouri-valley-loyolas-mind-loyola-leave-horizon-league-join-missouri-valley-conference/ Amatangelo, Nick. "Missouri Valley on Loyola’s mind: Loyola to leave Horizon League and join Missouri Valley Conference," Loyola Phoenix (Loyola University Chicago), Tuesday, April 16, 2013.
  6. https://atlantic10.com/news/2021/11/16/general-atlantic-10-conference-accepts-loyola-university-chicago-as-full-member-institution.aspx "Atlantic 10 Conference Accepts Loyola University Chicago as Full Member Institution," Atlantic 10 Conference, Tuesday, November 16, 2021.
  7. https://web.archive.org/web/20221022133109/https://loyolaramblers.com/news/2022/8/10/womens-golf-loyola-womens-golf-joins-maac-as-affiliate-member.aspx Loyola women's golf joins MAAC as affiliate member
  8. News: Quits football . Lewiston Morning Tribune . (Idaho) . Associated Press . November 25, 1931 . 7.
  9. Web site: Loyola-Chicago recalls 1963 champions as it pulls off buzzer-beater win. Khan. Sam. ESPN. March 15, 2018. March 17, 2018.
  10. Web site: 2014 Men's Volleyball Championship: Loyola Chicago wins first title. NCAA. March 17, 2018.
  11. Web site: Loyola repeats as men's NCAA volleyball national champions. Chicago Tribune. Associated Press. May 10, 2015. March 17, 2018.
  12. Web site: CBS Interactive . Shane Davis . June 6, 2015.
  13. Web site: Los Angeles Times . UC Irvine to play BYU for NCAA men's volleyball championship. May 2, 2013 . June 6, 2015.
  14. Web site: Loyola Chicago defeats Stanford in four sets to win first national title . NCAA. 2014-05-04 . 2015-04-24.
  15. Web site: Loyola repeats as men's NCAA volleyball national champions . Chicago Tribune . 2015-05-10 . 2015-05-10.