Visit Wichita secures national championship events for NJCAA soccer, NAIA wrestling

Taylor Eldridge
·2 min read

The National Junior College Athletic Association has selected Wichita to host its 2023 and 2024 men’s and women’s soccer national championship tournaments, which was announced on Thursday.

The NJCAA Div. I national tournaments for both men’s and women’s soccer will be held at Stryker Sports Complex from Nov. 12-18 in 2023 and from Nov. 17-23 in 2024. Visit Wichita helped secure the bid and estimates the joint national tournaments to generate $700,000 to the local economy.

Stryker Sports Complex, which consists of 11 turf fields, was recently the host for the NJCAA Div. II men’s and women’s soccer national tournament during the Fall of 2021.

“The Stryker Sports Complex is a premier soccer venue and Visit Wichita has a strong history of providing a first-class experience to the association’s student-athletes,” NJCAA director of championship operations Liz Homrig said in a press release.

The announcement was just the latest in a busy week for Visit Wichita, which also announced that the city had won bids to bring two more championship events to the Wichita area later this year.

Earlier this week the NAIA decided to continue its partnership with Visit Wichita and announced Hartman Arena in Park City will host its 2023, 2024 and 2025 men’s wrestling national championships. The venue has hosted the national championships for the last three years, bringing an estimated local economic impact of $800,000 each year.

The 2023 NAIA men’s wrestling national tournament will take place on March 3-4 at Hartman Arena.

“We are excited to once again bring this national event to the heart of the country for three more years,” Visit Wichita vice president of sports development Josh Howell said in a press release. “The event brings in competitors from all over the country, boosting local economic impact, is broadcast live on ESPN3 and is also a great opportunity for local and regional wrestling fans to enjoy two days of top-notch wrestling right here in the Wichita area.”

It was also announced by Visit Wichita that the Military Basketball Association will host its 2023 MBA playoffs in Wichita from May 26-28. The majority of the games will be played at Wichita Hoops, which features six courts for pool play, while the semifinals and championship game will be played at Koch Arena.