By JIM WALKER

Tribune Sports Editor

ATHENS — One conference’s loss is another’s gain.

The Ohio Valley Conference has lost a member once again as the River Valley Raiders officially accepted an offer to join the Tri-Valley Conference in the fall of 2014.

The 15-team member conference voted unanimously to accept River Valley.

The TVC Ohio Division members are Alexander, Athens, Meigs, Nelsonville-York, Vinton County and Wellston.

Belpre, Reedsville Eastern, Federal Hocking, Corning Miller, South Gallia, Racine Southern, Glouster Trimble, Waterford and Wahama, W.Va., are part of the Hocking Division.

River Valley will join the Ohio Division.

The loss of River Valley will leave the OVC with five members: Coal Grove, Chesapeake, Fairland, Rock Hill and South Point.

The league may still be open to further expansion, possibly adding Crooksville out of the Muskingum Valley League.

With the OVC dropping to a five-team league, talks could rekindle with the Southern Ohio Conference to merge and form its own 16-team league.