EIU Discontinues Men's & Women's Tennis
Panthers cease opeartions in both sports
5/12/2025 3:36:00 PM
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Dear Campus Community,
Eastern Illinois University has long taken pride in sponsoring a wide variety of NCAA Division I sports, historically more than any other members of the Ohio Valley Conference. In addition to our OVC competition, ElU is an affiliate member of both the Summit and Horizon leagues to support sports not sponsored by the OVC.
You may have heard recent news that relates to the competitive and economic environment of the NCAA and OVC, including developments in the House v. NCAA settlement. Because of these developments, ElU leadership has been exploring strategies to ensure high-quality competitive student-athlete experiences across all sports. Unfortunately, this settlement is expected to drastically reduce NCAA distributions to member schools, including EIU. For that reason, the University has been reviewing operating costs across all sports and recognizes that maintaining the current portfolio of teams and spending levels is a critical financial concern that requires attention.
Given these realities, I, in consultation with Athletic DirectorTom Michael, have made the difficult decision that the University will cease competition in men's and women's tennis, effective immediately.
Simply put, the cost structure and demands associated with competing in two different conferences (the Horizon League for men's tennis and the OVC for women's tennis) are no longer sustainable. Additionally, recruiting tennis student-athletes in the Midwest has proven more cost-prohibitive and challenging by the year.
Please know all impacted students will retain existing undergraduate athletic scholarship aid support for up to eight semesters, as well as access to the academic and wellness-related resources available to all student-athletes through graduation.
As a campus community, we know the loss of any program can be disappointing, but we remain committed to maintaining athletics programs that can sustainably and effectively support the success of our student-athletes in the classroom and in competition.
Jay Gatrell
President
Eastern Illinois University has long taken pride in sponsoring a wide variety of NCAA Division I sports, historically more than any other members of the Ohio Valley Conference. In addition to our OVC competition, ElU is an affiliate member of both the Summit and Horizon leagues to support sports not sponsored by the OVC.
You may have heard recent news that relates to the competitive and economic environment of the NCAA and OVC, including developments in the House v. NCAA settlement. Because of these developments, ElU leadership has been exploring strategies to ensure high-quality competitive student-athlete experiences across all sports. Unfortunately, this settlement is expected to drastically reduce NCAA distributions to member schools, including EIU. For that reason, the University has been reviewing operating costs across all sports and recognizes that maintaining the current portfolio of teams and spending levels is a critical financial concern that requires attention.
Given these realities, I, in consultation with Athletic DirectorTom Michael, have made the difficult decision that the University will cease competition in men's and women's tennis, effective immediately.
Simply put, the cost structure and demands associated with competing in two different conferences (the Horizon League for men's tennis and the OVC for women's tennis) are no longer sustainable. Additionally, recruiting tennis student-athletes in the Midwest has proven more cost-prohibitive and challenging by the year.
Please know all impacted students will retain existing undergraduate athletic scholarship aid support for up to eight semesters, as well as access to the academic and wellness-related resources available to all student-athletes through graduation.
As a campus community, we know the loss of any program can be disappointing, but we remain committed to maintaining athletics programs that can sustainably and effectively support the success of our student-athletes in the classroom and in competition.
Jay Gatrell
President
