General | 5/11/2016 10:54:00 AM

Rock Hill, S.C.---- For the 10th consecutive year, Wingate University is the winner of the South Atlantic Conference Echols Athletic Excellence Award, which annually recognizes the athletic department with the highest point total based on cumulative final standings in each of the conference's 18 sports. Wingate piled up 180 points in the 2015-16 year, winning by 24.5 points.

"Our student-athletes make us so very proud, and we join them in celebrating another Echols Excellence Award," Wingate University president Dr. Rhett Brown says. "I am grateful for the work of vice-president and Athletic Director Steve Poston, the coaches and the athletic department staff for another great season for Bulldog athletics."

The 10th consecutive victory extends a record. Before Wingate's run, the previous record was eight, set by Elon from 1989-1997. In Wingate's 10-year run, the Bulldogs have accumulated 306.5 points more than the next closest school.

Wingate has won by 20 or more points in each of the past six years, starting with the 29-point win in 2010-11. The Bulldogs won by 20.5 in 2011-12, while winning by 20 in 2012-13. Wingate accumulated a record 184 points to win by 44 in 2013-14, while collecting 182 points to win by a record 49.5 last year. Before Wingate's 29-point win, the highest margin of victory was 12.5 set by Elon in 1996-97. The Bulldogs now have more Excellence Cup Awards (10) than the other 11 current conference schools combined (five).

"Winning the SAC Echols Athletic Excellence Cup is always a thrill," Poston says. "The SAC is an extremely competitive conference with many outstanding institutions. To win this award one time is certainly a challenge. Winning this award 10 consecutive years is a testament to the hard work of our outstanding coaches and student-athletes as well as the support we receive from the entire university. I could not be prouder to be a Wingate Bulldog!"

Excellence Cup points are based on final regular season standings in all conference sports except men's cross country, women's cross country, men's golf, women's golf, men's track & field and women's track & field, where tournament standings are used. The trophy is presented at the SAC Annual Business Meeting at the conclusion of each academic year. The trophy is named in honor of former SAC Commissioner Doug Echols.

Wingate once again got off to a quick start in the fall, with volleyball, men's soccer and women's cross country picking up championships. Men's soccer added a tournament championship, while all three teams earned NCAA Tournament bids. The women's soccer team added a second-place finish in the fall, advancing to the SAC title game and earning a fifth-straight NCAA Tournament bid. The Bulldogs held a 5.5-point lead heading to the winter.

The women's basketball team registered a second-place finish while going on to win the SAC Tournament title. The men's basketball team finished third, then advanced to the NCAA regional semifinals. Wingate's lead was 12 heading into the spring.

Wingate's women's tennis team went undefeated in league play to win a sixth straight SAC title, while the men's team went 10-1 to capture a third consecutive championship. The men's lacrosse team and women's track and field team notched second-place finishes, while women's lacrosse, softball and men's track and field finished third.

Queens finished second in the Excellence Cup standings, 17 points clear of third-place Carson-Newman. Lenoir-Rhyne and Lincoln Memorial rounded out the top five.

SAC Echols Athletic Excellence Award Standings (2015-16)

1. Wingate	180
2. Queens	155.5
3. Carson-Newman	138.5
4. Lenoir-Rhyne	131
5. Lincoln Memorial	130.5
6. Anderson	104.5
7. Catawba	99.5
8. Tusculum	98
9. Coker	91.5
10. Newberry	91
11. Mars Hill	86.5
12. Brevard	57.5

SAC Echols Athletic Excellence Award Standings (since 2006) 

1. Wingate	1231
2. Carson-Newman	924.5
3. Lenoir-Rhyne	916.5
4. Tusculum	867.5
5. Lincoln Memorial	796
6. Catawba	789
7. Newberry	783.5
8. Mars Hill	714
9. Anderson (5 yrs)	564
10. Queens (3 yrs)	423.5
11. Brevard (6 yrs)	356
12. Coker (3 yrs)	256.5

 
WINGATE UNIVERSITY
  
Wingate University, consistently ranked as a top 10 "best value" in the South by U.S. News & World Report, serves more than 3,100 students on three campuses in Wingate, Charlotte and Hendersonville, N.C. Founded in 1896, the University offers 35 undergraduate majors, 37 minors and career concentrations, numerous pre-professional programs, master's degrees in business, accounting, education, physician assistant studies and sport management and doctorates in pharmacy, physical therapy and education.
 
With a 15 to 1 student/teacher ratio, Wingate students gain the tools and support needed to excel in academics and apply that learning toward an extraordinary career and life. To view current news, video and story ideas, visit www.youtube.com/wingateuniversity. 
 
In addition to a robust intramural athletics program, Wingate student athletes compete in 22 NCAA Division II sports. The University has won the South Atlantic Conference Echols Athletic Excellence Award for the past nine years. For more information, go to www.wingate.edu.
 
Wingate is first among NCAA Division II Academic All-America®-producing colleges in the 2000's with 82 selections. Among North Carolina's colleges and universities, Wingate's 82 Academic All-America® honorees are number one during this millennium. Wingate's 91 lifetime Academic All-America® picks are tops among all SAC schools. For more information on WU athletics, go to www.wingatebulldogs.com.