The Davenport Panthers are the athletic teams that represent

Davenport University Davenport University is a private university with campuses throughout Michigan and online. It was founded in 1866 by Conrad Swensburg and currently offers associate, bachelor's, and master's degrees; diplomas; and post-grad certification prog ...

, located in Caledonia Township,

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the

NCAA Division II NCAA Division II (D-II) is the intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environment ...

level of the

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

(NCAA), primarily competing in the

Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. The GLIAC was founded in June 1972. Its eleven member ...

(GLIAC) for most of its sports as a provisional member since the 2017–18 academic year (achieving D-II full member status in 2019–20). The Panthers previously competed in the

Wolverine–Hoosier Athletic Conference The Wolverine–Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), headquartered in Livonia, Michigan. The conference consists of twelve colleges and u ...

(WHAC) of the

National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) established in 1940, is a college athletics association for higher education, colleges and universities in North America. Most colleges and universities in the NAIA offer athletic schola ...

(NAIA) from 2005–06 to 2016–17.

Other affiliations

Men's lacrosse and wrestling currently compete as members of the

Great Lakes Valley Conference The Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. Its fifteen member institutions are located in the U.S. states of Illinois, ...

(GLVC). In addition, the university's competitive cheer and Stunt teams compete as members of the

National Cheerleaders Association The US National Cheerleaders Association (NCA) was established as a way to bring cheerleaders together to learn new skills. Since 1951, the NCA has held summer camps, and is credited with the invention of the herkie jump, the pom-pom, the spirit s ...

(NCA) while the DU competitive dance team competes in the

National Dance Association The National Dance Association (NDA), was an association of SHAPE America (originally titled American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance) (AAHPERD). It was one of the oldest dance education organizations, and developed ...

(NDA). Davenport added varsity

Esports Esports (), short for electronic sports, is a form of competition using video games. Esports often takes the form of organized, multiplayer video game competitions, particularly between professional players, played individually or as teams. ...

as a member of the

National Association of Collegiate Esports The National Association of Collegiate Esports (NACE) is a North American collegiate esports association founded in 2016. It is a nonprofit membership association organized by and on behalf of its members. With its members they are developing stru ...

(NACE) in 2018. In addition to NCAA sports, DU also offers additional sports that the NCAA does not currently sponsor championships. Men's rugby competes at the Division I level of

USA Rugby USA Rugby (formally the United States of America Rugby Football Union, Ltd.) is the national governing body for the sport of rugby union in the United States. Its role is to achieve and maintain “high levels of quality in all aspects of rugby ...

's Midwest Rugby Union, as well as a JV team at the D-II level. Men's ice hockey competes in the ACHA Division I in the Great Lakes Collegiate Hockey League (GLCHL), as well as a JV team at the ACHA DIII level.

Varsity teams

Davenport competes in 21 intercollegiate varsity sports and 21 non-varsity sports: Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, lacrosse, soccer, swimming & diving, tennis, track & field and wrestling; while women's sports include basketball, cross country, golf, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming & diving, tennis, track & field and volleyball. Non-varsity men's sports include bowling, eSports, ice hockey (ACHA DI, DII & DIII), marching band, pep band, rugby and volleyball; while non-varsity women's sports include bowling, cheerleading (NCA & sideline), dance, eSports, ice hockey (ACHA DI), marching band, pep band, pompon, rugby, stunt and wrestling. Men's and women's varsity teams in ultimate will be added in 2023–24. ;Notes

Men's basketball

The men's

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

team plays its games at 1,500-seat DU Student Center. The Panthers won their first WHAC conference champions in 2012. The team appeared three NAIA Men's Division II Basketball Championships tournaments 2010, 2011, and 2012. The team reached the quarterfinal round in 2011 and in 2012, the Panthers reached the NAIA DII Final Four for the first time in the program's history. In their first NAIA Final Four appearance, the third-ranked Panthers lost to the second-ranked and eventual 2012 Champions,

Oregon Tech The Oregon Institute of Technology (Oregon Tech) is a public college in Oregon with a residential campus in Klamath Falls, Oregon, an urban campus in Wilsonville, Oregon, and additional locations in Salem and Seattle. Almost all students comple ...

50–55.

Ice hockey

The Davenport men's

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

program started in 2002 through the 2009–2010 season the program competed in at the

American Collegiate Hockey Association The American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) is a college ice hockey association. The ACHA's purpose is to be an organization of collegiate affiliated programs, which provides structure, regulates operations, and promotes quality in collegi ...

(ACHA) Division II level in the Great Midwest Hockey League (GMHL). Since the 2008–2009 season, DU has also fielded a second/JV team participating at the ACHA Division III level in the

Michigan Collegiate Hockey Conference The Michigan Collegiate Hockey Conference (MCHC) is a Men's ACHA Division 3 conference made up of smaller colleges and universities in the state of Michigan. Championship history ACHA National Champions The MCHC has produced fifteen National Ch ...

(MCHC). Davenport hockey captured three straight Division II National Championships in 2008, 2009, and 2010. As of the conclusion of the 2009–10 season the Panthers had a record of 325–75–13 (.803). In the 2010–11 season, the program moved to the ACHA Division I level in the Great Lakes Collegiate Hockey League. The team finished their first season at the ACHA DI level with an overall record of 36–10–0 and 15–4–0 in the GLCHL. On March 9, 2011, Davenport won the ACHA Men's Division I National Championship 3–2 in overtime against two-time defending champions Lindenwood. The team finished the 2011–12 regular season with an overall record of 21–21–0 and 15–5–0 in the GLCHL. Despite losing in the GLCHL playoffs, the Panthers received an at-large bid to the 2012 ACHA Men's Division I National Championship, ranked 14th. In the opening round, the team defeated Drexel 4–1 before the team lost 1–3 to

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

, the eventual 2012 ACHA DI Champions.

Football

Davenport's football program debuted in the 2016 season, finishing 6–5 in the NAIA under coach Lou Esposito. Esposito resigned at season's end to take a position with

Western Michigan West Michigan and Western Michigan are terms for a region in the U.S. state of Michigan's Lower Peninsula. Generally, it refers to the Grand Rapids- Muskegon-Holland area, and more broadly to most of the region along the Lower Peninsula's Lake ...

. Davenport hired Ferris State assistant Sparky McEwen to replace him as the team moved up to the NCAA's Division II. In 2022, Davenport had the best season in program history, finishing the regular season at 8–2 and qualifying for the Division II playoffs for the first time. It also ranked as high as No. 13 in national polls. Davenport's two regular season losses were to

Grand Valley State Grand Valley State University (GVSU, GV, or Grand Valley) is a public university in Allendale, Michigan, United States. It was established in 1960 as Grand Valley State College. Its main campus is situated on approximately west of Grand Rapids. ...

and Ferris State, each of which spent part of the season as the No. 1 ranked team in the country. In its first playoff appearance, Davenport again faced the eventual national champion Ferris State, losing 41–7. After the

2023 NFL draft The 2023 NFL draft was the 88th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2023 NFL season, 2023 season. The NFL draft, draft was held outside of Kansas City Union Station, Union Station i ...

, Davenport wide receiver Sy Barnett was signed by the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...

as an undrafted free agent, making him the first player in program history to receive an NFL contract.

Men's lacrosse

Men's

lacrosse Lacrosse is a contact team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game w ...

program began in 2008 and joined the NCAA ranks in the 2019–20 academic year. Prior to NCAA competition, the Panthers competed as a member of the MCLA Division I in the Central Collegiate Lacrosse Association; In 2011, the Panthers defeated the two-time defending champion, St. Thomas 14–9 in the MCLA Division II National Championship game to win the school's first lacrosse championship. The win concluded a program best record of 18–5. In addition to the 2011 Championship, the Panthers have received bids to the MCLA Division II Tournament three straight seasons in 2009, 2010, and 2011. The 2013 season was their 1st season as a MLCA Division I program. In addition to MCLA competition, DU won the first NAIA men's lacrosse national invitational tournament with a 13–10 win on May 7, 2016. DU elevated the program from MCLA to NCAA status in 2019 and after playing the 2020 season as an independent, announced the team will join the

(GLVC) in 2020–21.

Women's lacrosse

Women's lacrosse joined the NAIA independent

National Women's Lacrosse League The National Women's Lacrosse League (NWLL) is a National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) women's lacrosse-only college athletic conference. The vast majority of NAIA women's lacrosse programs play at the club level as part of th ...

(NWLL) starting in the 2011–12 academic year. The NWLL served as the governing body during emerging sport status for NAIA women's lacrosse. Following creation of a national invitational tournament, DU won the inaugural NAIA title. The program began in 2008 as a member of the WDIA Division II in the Women's Collegiate Lacrosse League. In the first four seasons the team compiled a record of 27–35–1 at the WDIA club level and a record of 10–9 in its first season of NAIA competition with a 4–6 NWLL record in 2011–12.

Rugby

Davenport Rugby competes in the Division 1-A of

college rugby College rugby is played by men and women throughout colleges and universities in the United States. Seven-a-side and fifteen-a-side variants of rugby union are most commonly played. Most collegiate rugby programs do not fall under the auspices of ...

. The team plays its home games at DU Turf Field.

College rugby College rugby is played by men and women throughout colleges and universities in the United States. Seven-a-side and fifteen-a-side variants of rugby union are most commonly played. Most collegiate rugby programs do not fall under the auspices of ...

is governed by

as the sport is not governed by the NAIA or NCAA. Men's

rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby union: 15 players per side *** American flag rugby *** Beach rugby *** Mini rugby *** Rugby sevens, 7 players per side *** Rugby tens, 10 players per side *** Snow rugby *** Tou ...

is one of the newest varsity sport offerings by Davenport University, first played in 2009. Davenport began its rugby program, in part due to the growth of rugby in Grand Rapids and throughout western Michigan. Davenport began its rugby program with big ambitions, stating their goal of becoming a premier rugby program in the midwest and advancing to the USA Rugby national championship playoffs. Davenport played its inaugural 2009–2010 season in Division II. The team opened its season in September 2009 with a 100–0 shutout win over Wayne State. The Panthers finished the 2009–2010 season with a record of 11–3, went 8–0 in conference play, and notched an impressive non-conference 27–5 win over DI-AA program

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the ...

. The Panthers first-year success led the Panthers to compete in Division I-AA in the 2010–2011 season. Despite stepping up to a higher level of competition, the Panthers had another strong season, going 3–1 in conference play, and notching impressive non-conference wins against

College Premier Division Division 1-A Rugby (formerly known as the College Premier Division) is the highest level of men's college rugby within the United States and is administered by USA Rugby. Division 1-A rugby is modeled after NCAA athletic competitions, with the 4 ...

(DI-A) opponents Notre Dame and

Ohio State The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one of the largest universities by enrollme ...

, as well as DI-AA powerhouses Michigan State and

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

. A come-from-behind 29–27 win over

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

in the fall of 2010 meant that Davenport qualified for the spring 2011 USA Rugby Division 1 National Championship tournament. In the university's first appearance in the tournament, Davenport entered the 16-team tournament as the 16th seed and only at-large bid. Davenport first shutout

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

27–0 in the round of 16, before defeating

Kansas State Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant college in 1863 and was the first public inst ...

46–5 in the quarterfinals to earn a spot in the USA Rugby semifinals, held in

Stanford, California Stanford is a census-designated place (CDP) in the northwest corner of Santa Clara County, California, United States. It is the home of Stanford University, after which it was named. The CDP's population was 21,150 at the United States Census, ...

. Davenport defeated

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...

62–21 in the D1 National Semifinals to clinch a berth in the championship. In the championship game Davenport defeated

UC-Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Tracing its roots back to 1891 as an independent teachers college, UCSB joined ...

38–19 to win the USA Rugby Men's Division I Rugby Championship, in only the program's second season of play and the program's first season in Division 1. Davenport's freshman flyhalf JP Eloff was named the tournament MVP, scoring 22 points in the semifinal and 25 points in the final. Davenport finished the championship season with a record of 15–2 and outscored opponents by a combined score of 595 to 255. In its third season, the Panthers began the 2011–2012 season ranked #1 in preseason polls. The 2011–2012 season was another successful campaign for the Panthers, going 6–0 in conference play, and finishing the regular season ranked #1 in D1-AA. The strong play of flyhalf J.P. Eloff, the leading scorer in D1-AA, led to Eloff being selected to participate in trials for the US national team. In the playoffs, Davenport beat

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

87–0 in the round of 16, defeated Wisconsin 34–11 in the quarterfinals, and defeated Dartmouth 35–18 in the semifinals. The win over Dartmouth placed the Panthers in the championship for the second consecutive season. In the 2012 championship game, Davenport shutout

San Diego State San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California, United States. Founded in 1897, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system. SDSU is ...

39–0 to win 2012 USA Rugby Division I-AA National Championship. The Panthers 2011–12 season was marked by the Panthers going undefeated in collegiate competition. The team had a loss to

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

in the semifinal round of Qualifier Tournament for the 2012 USA Sevens Collegiate Rugby Championship and exhibition losses against the Chicago Griffins and Chicago Lions, both of the Rugby Super League. For the 2012–13 season, Davenport moved up to play in Division 1-A.

Championships

National championships

Conference championships

i. Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC): ii. American Heartland Conference Champions iii. Great Lakes Collegiate Hockey League (GLCHL): 2011 iv. Great Midwest Hockey League (GMHL): 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 v. Great Lakes Intercollegiate Hockey Association (GLIHA): 2004 vi. Midwest Rugby Eastern Conference (MREC): 2011

References

External links

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