PEPPER PIKE, OHIO - On Wednesday, May 22, the Presidents' Cup was presented to Trevecca Nazarene University Athletic Director Mark Elliott and Men's Golfer Stephen Williams during the G-MAC Spring Joint Council Meeting on the campus of Ursuline College.
One special feature of the G-MAC Presidents' Cup are the name plates which feature a QR Code to recognize each winner. Scan the QR code for this year's winner and it will take you directly to the
TNU Presidents' Cup Championship page.
Presidents' Cup Recap:
2012-13 marked the inaugural year for the Great Midwest Athletic Conference, featuring participation from five of its member institutions, as the remaining members transition from their current conferences into the G-MAC for 2013-14.
Following the completion of the 2013 Baseball Championship in Nashville, Tennessee, the G-MAC has named 12 Conference Championship, including Men’s and Women’s Cross Country, Men’s and Women’s Soccer, Women’s Volleyball, Men’s and Women’s Basketball, Men’s and Women’s Golf, Women’s Tennis, Softball and Baseball.
Throughout the year, Cedarville University, Central State University, Trevecca Nazarene, Urbana University, and Ursuline College have been fighting to earn points through their performances at the G-MAC Championships toward the Presidents’ Cup standings. Entering into the Baseball Championships, Cedarville University and Trevecca Nazarene University were tied atop of the Presidents’ Cup standings.
As the 2012-13 year has proven, the Champions get crowned on final day of competition. It was no different when it came to the Presidents’ Cup. Many of the regular-season championships, who were fighting to earn the top seed, came down to the final contest of the year. The top seed also turned out to be vitally important in this first G-MAC season, as only one top seed did not win its championship.
Luckily for Trevecca, the Baseball Championship was no different, as the Trojans claimed the top seed on the final game of the regular-season needing a doubleheader sweep over Cedarville. The Tournament itself also came down to Cedarville and Trevecca, with Trevecca needing to win the final two to take the title and claim the Presidents’ Cup for the Trojans. When the dust settled, TNU earned the right to display the Presidents’ Cup for the next year and be recognized as the G-MAC’s first Presidents’ Cup Champion in conference history.
Cedarville grabbed an early lead in the Presidents’ Cup standings in the fall, winning the Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Championships, and the Women’s Volleyball Championship, while finishing second in Men’s Soccer. After the Fall season, Cedarville held a cup percentage of .833, while Trevecca Nazarene, who won the Women’s Soccer Championship and finished second in Men’s and Women’s Cross Country and Women’s Volleyball, ranked second at .722.
In the Winter, Cedarville won the Men’s Basketball Championship over Trevecca, while Trevecca finished second in Women’s Basketball, just ahead of third place Cedarville. The Spring brought Cedarville its fifth Championship, as the Yellow Jackets made a perfect run through Women’s Tennis.
Trevecca need to win the other four Spring Championships in order to catch and pass Cedarville, and that’s what it did with its four-straight Tournament Championship victories - Men’s and Women’s Golf, Baseball, and Softball, giving the Trojans five championships and a cup percentage of .825 to break the tie with Cedarville who dropped to .800 after finishing second in softball and baseball.
The only two championships won this year by an institution other than TNU and Cedarville was Urbana’s Men’s Soccer Tournament Championship as the top seed, and its Women’s Basketball Tournament Championship as the tournament’s #2 seed. The women’s basketball championship was also the only championship in which a top-seed or favorite did not win the title.
With ten members and nine participating institutions in 2013-14, the G-MAC Presidents’ Cup race will be a battle as TNU will look to repeat. The Trojans will have a lot of competition, not only from its opponents this season, but with the addition of Alderson-Broaddus, Davis and Elkins, Kentucky Wesleyan, Ohio Valley, and Salem International, the G-MAC will provide an even deeper and more talented road for whoever can prevail at the end and take control of the Presidents’ Cup.