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 2023âÂÂ24 academic year. The Bears previously competed in the Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (KIAC). They have been known as the River States Conference (RSC) since the 2016âÂÂ17 school year) from 1958âÂÂ59 to 1999âÂÂ2000. More recently, the Bears competed in the Mid-South Conference from 2000âÂÂ2001 to 2022âÂÂ2023.
NAIA
UPike competes in the following intercollegiate varsity sports:
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.