Pikeville Bears
{{Short description|Sports teams of the University of Pikeville in Kentucky}}
{{Infobox college athletics
| name = Pikeville Bears
| logo = UPike logo.svg
| logo_width = 200
| university = University of Pikeville
| association = NAIA
| conference = AAC (primary)
| director = Corey Fipps
| location = Pikeville, Kentucky
| first season =
| teams = 25
| mens_teams = 11
| womens_teams = 10
| coed_teams = 4
| stadium = Hambley Athletic Complex
| basketballarena = Appalachian Wireless Arena
| baseballfield = Johnnie Lemaster Field
| softballstadium = Paul Butcher Field
| soccerfield = Bob Amos Complex
| nickname = Bears
| color1 =
| color2 =
| hex1 =
| hex2 =
| pageurl = https://upikebears.com/index.aspx
}}
The Pikeville Bears, also the UPike Bears (stylized as "UPIKE"), are the athletic teams that represent the University of Pikeville, located in Pikeville, Kentucky, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), primarily competing in the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) since the 2023–24 academic year. The Bears previously competed in the Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (KIAC; now currently known as the River States Conference (RSC) since the 2016–17 school year) from 1958–59 to 1999–2000. More recently, the Bears competed in the Mid-South Conference from 2000–2001 to 2022–2023.
Conference affiliations
NAIA
- Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (1958–2000)
- Mid-South Conference (2000–2023)
- Appalachian Athletic Conference (2023–present)
Varsity teams
UPike competes in 25 intercollegiate varsity sports: men's sports include baseball, basketball, bowling, cross country, football, golf, soccer, swimming, tennis, track & field and wrestling; while women's sports include basketball, bowling, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track & field and volleyball; and co-ed sports include archery, cheerleading, dance and eSports.{{cite web|work=University of Pikeville|url=http://www.gopcbears.com/sports/2010/11/30/GEN_1130103451.aspx?tab=aboutpikevilleathletics|title=About Pikeville Athletics|access-date=February 10, 2012}}
=Accomplishments=
Pikeville athletics have won numerous conference championships and three national championships: two in women's bowling in 2004 and 2008 and a NAIA Division I men's basketball championship in 2011.{{cite web|work=University of Pikeville|url=http://www.gopcbears.com/sports/2010/11/30/athletichighlights.aspx?tab=athletichighlights|title=Athletic Highlights|access-date=February 10, 2012}}{{cite news|last=Staff|work=CBS Sports|url=http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/story/14846094/unseeded-pikeville-wins-naia-championship-game-in-overtime/rss|title=Unseeded Pikeville wins NAIA championship game in overtime|date=March 23, 2011|access-date=February 10, 2012}}
References
{{Reflist}}