ELMHURST, Ill. - With the 2010-11 academic year in the books, South Dakota State won its first Summit League Commissioner's Cup title in school history. Oral Roberts captured its fifth-straight Dr. William Steinbrecher Men's All-Sports Award, while North Dakota State took home its second consecutive Dr. Helen Smiley Women's All-Sports Award.
The Jackrabbits won the title with 97.5 points as the top four teams were separated by a mere 3.5 points. Oakland took second place honors with 97 points, followed by North Dakota State (95 points) and Oral Roberts (94 points). Fifth place went to Southern Utah with 85 points, while UMKC earned a sixth-place finish with a total of 83.5 points. IPFW placed seventh with 71 points, ahead of IUPUI's 67.5 points. Western Illinois (66.5 points) and Centenary (23 points) rounded out the field.
Of its 18 eligible sports, South Dakota State finished in the top five in 12 of those en route to capturing the Commissioner's Cup. The Jackrabbits won the men's cross country title and finished second in women's soccer, women's swimming & diving, men's indoor track & field, men's outdoor track & field and baseball. The Golden Grizzlies won five league titles in the sports of women's cross country, women's soccer, men's swimming & diving, women's swimming & diving and men's basketball.
ORU earned the men's all-sports award after capturing the regular season title in baseball and placing second in both basketball and tennis. On the women's side, NDSU had three first-place finishes in volleyball, indoor track & field and outdoor track & field. The Bison also captured second place in soccer and softball to win its second-straight women's all-sports title.
The Commissioner's Cup is given annually to the member institution that collects the most combined points in relationship to placement in league-sponsored sports between its men's and women's athletic programs, while the All-Sports Awards are given to the institutions that accumulate the most points in men's sports and women's sports. The men's award is named for former Valparaiso Director of Athletics Dr. William Steinbrecher, who guided the Crusaders from 1979-2004, while the women's award is named for former Western Illinois Director of Athletics Dr. Helen Smiley, who headed WIU's athletic program from 1994-2001.
Note: Standings for the 2010-11 Commissioner's Cup and the Dr. William Steinbrecher Men's All-Sports and Dr. Helen Smiley Women's All-Sports Awards can be found on the attached PDF document. The breakdown of each institution's points and finishes within each sport also can be found on the attached PDF.
