KANSAS CITY, Mo. – After a successful year of competition, Central Methodist University has claimed the Heart Commissioner's Cup for the 2019-20 academic year. This year's standings only reflect the fall and winter seasons as the spring season was canceled due to the COVID-19 Global Health Pandemic.
The Eagles earned a significant amount of points after stellar fall season that saw three tournament championships, two regular-season titles, and one individual cross country champion. Central also claimed a regular-season and postseason title in the winter during a record-breaking season for women's basketball while the competitive cheer program secured a runner-up title at the conference meet in February.
William Penn earned its second consecutive runner-up finish in the race for the cup after totaling 38 points. The Statesmen earned a regular-season and postseason title in men's basketball along with runner-up finishes by the women's basketball, men's bowling, and men's soccer programs. Rounding out the top three finishers was Grand View, who totaled 34 points throughout the season. The Vikings earned top finishes in football, men's wrestling, men's volleyball, and men's indoor track & field.
FINAL STANDINGS
1 - Central Methodist - 50
2 - William Penn - 38
3 - Grand View - 34
4 - MidAmerica Nazarene - 32
5 - Evangel - 29.5
T6 - Baker - 28
T6 - Clarke - 28
8 - Mount Mercy - 25
9 - Benedictine - 23.5
10 - Missouri Valley - 23
11 - Culver-Stockton - 17
12 - Graceland - 16
13 - Peru State - 10
About the Commissioner's Cup
The award, which will be presented to one-member institution annually, will serve as a symbol of athletic excellence in conference-sponsored championships.
Schools are required to count point totals for the five sports that all members sponsor (women's volleyball, men's basketball, women's basketball, baseball, and softball), along with their next three highest point totals from the remaining sports, regardless of gender.
The points system for scoring is as follows. Points are assigned based on the conference standings at the conclusion of the regular season. Points for conference sports without regular-season standings will be determined by the conference championship meet/event.
Points are awarded on a decreasing scale with first place earning 8 points, second place earning 7 points, etc. Three bonus points are awarded to the conference tournament champion. When two or more teams tie for final placing, the conference post-season seeding will determine the tiebreaker. In the event of a tie in the final standings, the tie break will be made with a head-to-head examination of regular-season finishes on a decreasing scale.
Conference sponsored sports for consideration include: M/W Cross Country, Football, M/W Soccer, M/W Volleyball, M/W Basketball, M/W Indoor Track & Field, M/W Bowling, Wrestling, Competitive Cheer, Competitive Dance, Baseball, Softball, M/W Golf, and M/W Outdoor Track & Field.
