May 27, 2014

MILWAUKEE - The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee continues to stake its claim to having the best athletic department in the Horizon League.

For the second time in the past three years, Milwaukee was officially awarded the McCafferty Trophy at this week's Horizon League's Executive Council meeting in Chicago.

This marks the seventh time UWM has won the trophy, given to the Horizon League's overall all-sports champion. Plus, UWM claimed the Women's All-Sports Award for the 11th time.

"The McCafferty Trophy is a culmination of all of the hard work by the student-athletes and the coaches that work with them," UWM Athletic Director Amanda Braun said. "Not only are we proud of the significant accomplishments by our student-athletes in the classroom, but their results on the playing fields also speak for themselves. This award is not only a reflection of the commitment of the University to the athletic department, but also of the quality of our coaches and staff members."

The Panthers captured the honors, in part, by collecting eight regular season and postseason league titles. The women's volleyball team won both the regular season and tournament titles, while the women's soccer team also won both crowns. In fact, the Panthers posted an impressive fall season, with the men's soccer team also claiming the Horizon League Tournament title.

The winning continued during the winter sports season, with the men's basketball team making a memorable postseason run on its way to the NCAA Tournament and the men's indoor track & field team collecting its 10th Horizon League title in the past 11 years. The swimming teams again finished strongly, with the women taking second.

The spring season added to the resume, with women's tennis claiming its first-ever Horizon League regular-season title.

This year's accomplishments add to a long storyline of success in Panther athletics. UWM first broke through in winning the McCafferty Trophy following the 2000-2001 school year and then claimed the award in three-straight years from 2004-2006. Milwaukee also won the all-sports honor in 2009 and 2012. On the women's side, UWM has now won the league award 11 times in the last 13 years.

Named in honor of James J. McCafferty, who served as the conference's first commissioner from 1979-80, the McCafferty Trophy is awarded annually by the Horizon League to a member institution compiling the greatest number of performance points, based on its finish in the League's 19 championship sports.

For the sports of men's and women's soccer, volleyball, men's and women's basketball, softball and baseball, points are awarded based on combined regular-season (60 percent) and championship (40 percent) finishes. For all other sports, points are based on performance in the League championships.

With seven McCafferty titles, Milwaukee is tied for the second-most in League history with former members Notre Dame and Oral Roberts.

McCafferty Trophy Standings
1. Milwaukee: 43
2. Youngstown State: 39.5
3. Green Bay: 34.5
4. Cleveland State: 34
5. Oakland: 33.5
6. Wright State: 33
7. Detroit: 31
8. UIC: 28.5
9. Valparaiso: 20

Men's Sports Totals
1. Cleveland State: 23
t-2. UIC: 18
t-2. Wright State: 18
4. Milwaukee: 17
5. Youngstown State: 16
t-6. Detroit: 15
t-6. Green Bay: 15
8. Oakland: 13
9. Valparaiso: 7

Women's Sports Totals
1. Milwaukee: 26
2. Youngstown State: 23.5
3. Oakland: 20.5
4. Green Bay: 19.5
5. Detroit: 16
6. Wright State: 15
7. Valparaiso: 13
8. Cleveland State: 11
9. UIC: 10.5