WICHITA, Kan. (2022-23 Commissioner’s Cup Standings) — Kansas Wesleyan University has won the KCAC Commissioner’s Cup for the 2022-23 academic year, the conference office announced Thursday. The KCAC Commissioner’s Cup is awarded annually as a symbol of excellence in athletics representing 21 championships. Member institutions can earn points for their finish of each varsity team in those 21 officially recognized conference sports. The KCAC Commissioner’s Cup is presented by McCownGordon Construction.

“I am very proud of our student-athletes, coaches, and athletic staff for coming together to help us earn the Commissioner’s Cup,” Miguel Paredes, the athletic director at Kansas Wesleyan, remarked. “This honor takes everyone on campus believing in one another and working together to put out a successful product.”

This marks the third time the Coyotes have taken home the KCAC Commissioner’s Cup in the award’s history (dating back to the 2012-13 academic year), and the third time in the past four years that Kansas Wesleyan has earned this honor.

“This award goes beyond the Kansas Wesleyan community and celebrates the importance of community outside of Kansas Wesleyan,” Paredes continued. “We cannot win without the outstanding support we get in the community. All of Salina should be proud and celebrate this award with us. I am extremely proud to be part of an outstanding winning culture here.”

The Coyotes had 166.5 total points to lead the conference. Ottawa University finished in second place with 156 points, while Friends University rounded out the top three with 143.5 points.

“I would like to thank Richard Speas for his leadership during the fall semester as he was serving as the Interim Athletic Director,” Paredes said. “His leadership in the interim period helped us get started in the fall and set us on the path to success.”

“The Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference congratulates Kansas Wesleyan University Athletics on this significant accomplishment.  This award is the ultimate group accomplishment needing collective success from teams across all three sports seasons,” stated Dr. Scott Crawford, KCAC Commissioner.  “I am honored to present this award to Miguel Parades and his staff upon completion of a terrific 2022-23 athletic campaign.”

Kansas Wesleyan found success in a variety of sports throughout the fall, winter, and spring seasons.

The Coyotes were in second place in the Commissioner’s Cup standings following the 2022 fall sports season, trailing the University of Saint Mary. Top-three finishes in the Women’s Soccer and Volleyball regular-season standings, as well as top three finishes by both the Coyote men’s and women’s cross country teams at the 2022 KCAC Cross Country Championships, put Kansas Wesleyan in a good position in the Commissioner’s Cup standings following the fall sports season.

Kansas Wesleyan scored the most Commissioner’s Cup points (53) of any KCAC institution in the winter sports season, which helped narrow the gap between the Coyotes and Saint Mary to only half a point. KWU finished in the top three in both the Men’s and Women’s Basketball regular-season standings, finished second at the KCAC Competitive Dance Championships, and finished in second place at the KCAC Men’s Indoor Track & Field Championships.

The Coyotes continued their success in the spring, tallying the second most points in the spring sport season behind Ottawa University. Kansas Wesleyan finished in second at the KCAC Women’s Golf Championship, finished in a tie for third at the KCAC Men’s Golf Championship, took home the regular-season title in Baseball, and finished third on the men’s side at the KCAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships.

2022-23 KCAC Commissioner’s Cup Final Standings (Season-by-Season Breakdown)

About McCownGordon Construction
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About the Commissioner’s Cup
In an effort to further recognize the achievements of its student-athletes and member institutions, the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference developed an award for the institution that performs the greatest over the fall, winter, and spring athletic seasons. The KCAC Commissioner’s Cup will be awarded annually as a symbol of excellence in athletics representing 21 championships. Member institutions can earn points for their finish of each varsity team in those 21 officially recognized conference sports.

Points are assigned based on regular-season finish for football, men’s and women’s soccer, volleyball, men’s and women’s basketball, baseball, softball, and men’s and women’s tennis. In competitive cheer, competitive dance, cross country, men’s wrestling, indoor track & field, men’s and women’s golf, and outdoor track & field, the conference championship meet results will determine point values. To be a conference sport there must be six member institutions competing in that sport at the varsity level.

Teams who finish in first place will be awarded a maximum number of points equivalent to the total number of teams competing in that respective sport. Point tallies will continue in reverse order until the last place team has been awarded its corresponding point value (i.e. if a sport only has seven teams, point values will be given from the maximum 7 to 1).  When two or more teams tie for final placing in the conference standings, each team will be awarded the average of the respective placing. For example, if three teams tied for second place in a sport with 11 teams, those three teams will be given the score of nine points because those three teams are occupying the second (10 points), third (9 points) and fourth (8 points) positions in the standings. The sum of those three positions (27 points) divided by the three teams yields an average score of nine points for each of the teams.