Once Again! Stevens Wins Second Straight Empire 8 Commissioner's Cup

5/21/2019 9:42:10 AM

Stevens Institute of Technology has repeated as the Empire 8 Commissioner's Cup winners for the 2018-19 academic year. Stevens, which sponsors 22 of the league's 24 sports, totaled 152 points out of a possible 169 – good for a percentage of .899. St. John Fisher finished second with 133.5 points (.804), while Nazareth was third having accumulated 112.5 points (.674).

The Cup recognizes department-wide success across all athetic programs and measures success based on results throughout the academic year. The standings are determined by each members' standings in conference sports following the regular season and post-season. To see the complete results and where each member institution finished, please see below. 

CLOSER LOOK
Stevens had another remarkable year, claiming E8 titles in ten different sports and regular season championships in seven. Their .899 percentage is the second-highest total recorded since the league began the award following the 2006-07 year. The highest percentage was .905 set by former E8 member, Ithaca College, in 2015-16.
 
Stevens was balanced throughout the year, winning three E8 titles in the fall, winter, and then four during the spring season. The Ducks won both men's and women's soccer titles, as well as women's tennis in the fall. During the winter, the men's and women's indoor track and field teams each hoisted trophies, as did the men's swimming program. And most recently, Stevens claimed hardware in men's tennis, men's volleyball, as well as men's and women's outdoor track and field. 
  
Fisher finished in second place with a percentage of .804, totaling five Empire 8 Conference championships and four regular season titles. Their final percentage is the highest program history. The Cardinals had a terrific spring, which saw them bring home titles in men's and women's lacrosse, men's golf, and softball. The men's lacrosse championship was the first in program history. 
  
Nazareth was third, while Utica finished fourth with a .604 percentage - the highest in department history. Following Utica was Alfred, Hartwick, Houghton, Sage, and Elmira. In total, six different E8 members won league titles during the year, with five of the six claiming multiple championships.

Alfred made the biggest jump in the Commissioner's Cup standings this past year as the Saxons finished seventh a year ago, and moved up to fifth following the 2018-19 academic year.
 

Commissioner's Cup points are awarded based on each team's finish in the E8 standings at the completion of the regular season and post-season. Points are awarded on a scale dependent upon the number of schools that sponsor the sport (affiliate members are not calculated into the point scale). A team's regular season finish will be added to their post-season finish and divided by two for the final total for that sport. The actual amount of points earned is then divided by the amount of possible points for each school based on conference-sponsored sports to determine percentage.

2018-19 Empire 8 Conference Commissioner's Cup Standings 

	ACTUAL	POSSIBLE	PERCENT
Stevens	152	169	0.899
Fisher	133.5	166	0.804
Nazareth	112.5	167	0.674
Utica	103.25	171	0.604
Alfred	75.5	149	0.507
Hartwick	64.25	133	0.483
Houghton	67.5	148	0.456
Sage	41.25	140	0.295
Elmira	31.5	129	0.244

ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit www.empire8.com and https://youtu.be/wzL4HcDoUUQ