The Ave Maria Gyrenes are the athletic teams that represent

Ave Maria University Ave Maria University (AMU) is a private Roman Catholic university in Ave Maria, Florida. It shares its history with the former Ave Maria College in Ypsilanti, Michigan, which was founded in 1998 and moved its campus in 2007. The two schools wer ...

, located in

Ave Maria, Florida Ave Maria, Florida, United States, is a planned community and Census-designated place in Collier County, Florida. History Ave Maria, Florida was founded in 2005 by Ave Maria Development Company, a partnership consisting of the Barron Collier ...

, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the

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

(NAIA), primarily competing in the

Sun Conference The Sun Conference (TSC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Seven of the ten full member institutions are located in Florida, with three in Georgia. The Sun Conference c ...

(formerly known as the Florida Sun Conference (FSC) until after the 2007–08 school year) since the 2009–10 academic year. They are also a member of the

United States Collegiate Athletic Association The United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) is a national organization for the intercollegiate athletic programs of 72 mostly small colleges, including community/junior colleges, across the United States. The USCAA holds 15 nationa ...

(USCAA).

Varsity teams

Ave Maria competes in 24 intercollegiate varsity sports: Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, soccer, swimming, tennis, track & field (indoor and outdoor) and ultimate frisbee; basketball, beach volleyball, cross country, dance, golf, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track & field (indoor and outdoor) and volleyball. Former sports included men's & women's rugby.

Football

In 2011, Ave Maria became the first college in southwestern Florida to field a football team. In the spring of 2016, the Gyrenes football team joined the

Mid-South Conference The Mid-South Conference (MSC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Member institutions are located in Kentucky, Ohio, and Tennessee. The league is headquartered in Lou ...

(MSC) as an affiliate member.

Lacrosse

The women's lacrosse team competed in the

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 the ...

(NWLL) in their first varsity season in the spring of 2015.

References

External links

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