SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — Utah Valley director of athletics Dr. Jared Sumsion has announced that Utah Valley's indoor track and field program has accepted an invitation to compete in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) as an affiliate member beginning with the 2026-27 season.
"The opportunity to join the MPSF was one that we couldn't pass up," said Sumsion. "This affiliation will allow our athletes to compete against their peers from The Big West in indoor track and field, while also providing the opportunity to go head-to-head with high-level athletes from the WCC and Pac-12."
The announcement comes as Utah Valley officially joins The Big West on July 1. The league sponsors cross country and outdoor track and field, but does not sponsor indoor. The MPSF has been home to most Big West and all West Coast Conference schools who compete in indoor track and field. The Wolverines will join Big West compatriots Cal State Fullerton, CSUN, Long Beach State, UC Irvine, and UC Riverside in the MPSF, along with WCC foes Pacific, Pepperdine, Portland, San Francisco, and Saint Mary's.
The Wolverines are not the only team joining the MPSF this coming winter. Fellow Big West members Sacramento State and UC Santa Barbara will join the MPSF along with Pac-12 programs Boise State, Colorado State, San Diego State, and Utah State. Washington State will also remain in the conference after returning to the new-look Pac-12. In total, there will be 19 women's and 12 men's programs competing for the conference title in February.
"We're excited to join the MPSF. It's a long-standing multi-conference affiliation with a strong tradition in track and field, and we believe it will be a great fit for our program," said Utah Valley track and field head coach Scott Houle. "The opportunity to compete against schools from different conferences will help us challenge ourselves and continue to improve throughout the season. We're grateful for the opportunity to be part of it. We look forward to the challenges ahead and are excited to begin competing in the MPSF."
Utah Valley is coming off of a very strong 2025-26 track season that saw the men's team win its first indoor title since 2015 and the women's team win its third-straight outdoor conference championship. Overall, Utah Valley's men's team has won three indoor and nine outdoor titles, while the women's team has claimed two indoor and nine outdoor championships in the D-I era.
The MPSF has a long and storied history of success in Olympic sports, with at least one MPSF athlete represented in each Summer Olympics since 1996. At the 2024 Paris Olympics, a total of 138 current or former MPSF athletes competed, earning a total of 59 medals, both the fourth-most among all NCAA conferences. The MPSF currently offers 16 sports, and its institutions have won a total of 121 national championships since its inception in 1992.
The 2027 MPSF Indoor Track & Field Championships will run from Feb. 26-27 at The Podium in Spokane, Wash. The Wolverines are very familiar with The Podium, which was the site of the last two WAC Indoor Championships, where Utah Valley won the 2025 women's and 2026 men's titles.
