Dream Bigger. Achieve More
Bulldog Athletics embodies an academically centered, athletically enriched, high-impact experience and serves as a model for intercollegiate athletics in its truest sense. We recruit, develop, and graduate student-athletes who represent the very best of our institution and relentlessly compete in everything we do.
Vision
Bulldogs dream bigger, learn more, do more, and become more. We are Champions in Athletics and Leaders in Life.
Core Values
- Servant-Leadership- We lead by example through serving others, developing meaningful relationships, and spearheading initiatives that benefit our campus and local communities.
- Dedication- We dedicate the effort necessary for success in everything we do and will work hard to achieve at the highest levels of competition.
- Excellence- We intentionally seek opportunities to grow beyond what others perceive as limitations because we are driven by a standard of excellence on and off the playing surface.
- Inclusion-We celebrate our differences in race, ethnicity, gender, experience, and worldview, and leverage those differences as a competitive advantage and opportunity to learn from one another.
History
UNC Asheville’s intercollegiate athletics has participated in NCAA Division I competition since 1986 and is a member of the Big South Conference. UNC Asheville offers 16 sports including baseball, basketball, cross country, indoor and outdoor track, soccer, and tennis for men, and basketball, cross country, golf, indoor and outdoor track, soccer, swimming and diving, tennis, and volleyball for women.
UNC Asheville student-athletes consistently perform well in the classroom. In the past academic year, nine of our sixteen teams earned a perfect 1000 score in the national NCAA Academic performance Rate (APR) recognition for their work in the classroom.
UNC Asheville men’s basketball team has a long and storied history with the Bulldogs having won eight Big South regular season titles in 1997, 1998, 2002, 2008, 2012, 2017, 2018, 2023 and six Big South Tournament championships in 1989, 2003, 2011, 2012, 2016, and 2023. The Bulldogs have advanced to the NCAA Tournament five times in 2003, 2011, 2012, 2016, and 2023. The 2022-23 Bulldogs broke the program record for wins in a season with 27, Big South wins with 16, and captured both the Big South regular season and tournament championships on their way to appearing in the NCAA Tournament.
Over the last eight years, the Bulldogs women’s basketball program has won one Big South regular-season title, two Big South Tournament titles, advanced to the NCAA Tournament twice, and played in the WBI twice.
The Bulldogs had no shortage of accomplishments for 2024-25. The swimming & diving team has a current 14-dual meet home winning streak dating back to October 2020, continuing their unbeaten streak at home this past year. Women’s Golf saw Caroline Patterson earn Big South Conference Newcomer of the Year at the Big South Conference Championships this past year. UNC Asheville Men’s Tennis advanced to the Big South Conference Championships title match for the second consecutive year, while Tarek Erlewein earned Big South Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Year as well as graduating at the top of his class. This is the second consecutive year that a student-athlete has graduated as the valedictorian. Furthermore, the Bulldogs have earned 28 weekly honors for the Big South and ASUN Conference this season.
Facilities
The UNC Asheville Athletics Department utilizes various on-campus and community facilities for its 16 NCAA Division I programs:
- Kimmel Arena seats 3,200 and is the home for both Men’s and Women’s Bulldog Basketball.
- The Wilma M. Sherrill Center houses Kimmel Arena, classrooms, labs, fitness rooms, a wellness café, and a demonstration kitchen.
- The Justice Center includes administrative offices, a 1,100-seat volleyball arena, locker rooms, sports medicine facility, Olympic weight room, and an indoor swimming pool.
- The Student Recreation Center located adjacent to the Justice Center has an elevated track and multi-purpose courts.
- Outdoor athletic facilities on campus include Greenwood Fields for soccer and baseball and the Karl Straus Track.
- The Asheville Racquet Club, located minutes from campus, is the home for Men’s and Women’s Tennis and includes both indoor and outdoor courts (Note: UNC Asheville Athletics is currently working on planning and building a new tennis facility on campus).
- The Cliffs at Walnut Cove serves as the home facility for the women’s golf team. The Jack Nicklaus Signature Design opened in 2005 and was recognized by the PGA Tour as the only championship golf course to debut in tournament-ready condition.
Students have free admission to all home, regular season athletic events. More information about UNC Asheville athletics, including home competition dates, is available at www.uncabulldogs.com.
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