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OGDEN, Utah (July 16, 2010) – For the first time in school history, Eastern Washington University has won the Sterling Savings Bank Big Sky Conference Presidents’ Cup, league commissioner Doug Fullerton announced Friday.
Eastern Washington University edged The University of Montana and Northern Arizona University, who tied for second. Two-time defending champion Weber State and Montana State tied for fourth.
The Sterling Savings Presidents’ Cup reinforces the Big Sky’s dedication to the academic side of the student-athlete experience. Overall athletic success is combined with team grade point averages, graduation rates, and All-Conference performers with grade point averages of at least 3.0 to determine the winner.
“It’s a credit to all of our student-athletes, coaches, staff and administration from top to bottom who just had a tremendous year, both in the classroom and on the playing field,’’ said Eastern Washington Athletics Director Bill Chaves. “Everyone associated with Eastern Washington University should be extremely proud of this accomplishment.’’
Eastern Washington finished fourth overall in athletics, compiling 122.5 points for an average of 8.75 per sport. The Eagles moved to the top of the Presidents’ Cup standings with a first-place finish in academics.
The Eagles’ athletic program compiled an overall grade point average of 3.244, and 13 of its 14 programs registered at least a 3.1. The women’s golf team led with a 3.56, followed by women's volleyball (3.44), women’s cross country (3.42), women’s tennis (3.41), men’s cross country (3.35), and women’s basketball (3.31). A total of 28 Eastern Washington All-Conference selections finished with a GPA of at least 3.0.
“My congratulations go out to EWU President Dr. Rodolfo, Athletics Director Bill Chaves, and all of the staff, coaches and Eagle student-athletes,’’ said Big Sky Conference Commissioner Doug Fullerton. “We’ve been awarding the Presidents’ Cup for eight years, and Eastern Washington is the fifth institution to win the award. I believe that shows how competitive our conference is on the field and in the classroom.”
“My thanks also goes to Sterling Savings Bank, who continues to support the Big Sky Conference by backing our most esteemed award,’’ Fullerton added.
Eastern Washington’s athletic success was highlighted by the regular-season title of its women’s basketball team. Wendy Schuller’s squad was picked seventh in the preseason polls, but proved the pollsters wrong by finishing with a 12-4 conference record and hosting the Big Sky Championship for the first time in school history.
Eastern Washington’s football team tied for second, earning an at-large bid to the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs. The soccer team finished second, while the volleyball squad tied for second.
The EWU men’s and women’s outdoor track and field programs also helped the cause, as both programs finished fourth at the championships in May.
“Our first goal is to do well in the classroom, and to try and win conference championships,’’ Chaves said. “Winning the Presidents’ Cup is a validation of those goals especially knowing how difficult and competitive it is to do.’’
The 2009-10 campaign proved to be another banner year for Big Sky student-athletes. Of the 125 Big Sky teams, 86 finished with an accumulative GPA of 3.0 or better, an improvement of four teams from 2008-09.
Weber State finished just behind Eastern Washington in accumulative GPA with a 3.241, followed by Montana State at 3.23, and Montana at 3.14.
Weber State’s women’s golf team posted the highest GPA in the conference at 3.57. EWU’s golf team was second (3.56), followed by the Montana State women’s cross country team (3.5).
A total of 232 athletes who earned first or second team All-Conference honors finished with a GPA of at least 3.0, an improvement of 11 from 2008-09. Northern Arizona led with 37, followed by Sacramento State (30), and Montana State and Weber State, both with 28.
“It’s great to see so many of our student-athletes performing so well in the classroom,’’ Fullerton said. “To have nearly 70 percent of our teams report grade point averages of at least 3.0 is outstanding. Seven of our institutions reported grade point averages of at least 3.0, and the other two were above 2.94. Credit goes out to the student-athletes, coaches, and all the hard-working administrators at all nine of our institutions.’’
In May, the Big Sky announced that Sacramento State won the women’s All-Sports Trophy. Weber State won the men’s All-Sports Trophy.