Fayetteville, N.C. - Following the conclusion of the 2015-2016 athletic season, the final standings for the USA South Overall, Men's, and Women's Presidents Cups have been released with three separate schools earning accolades. Methodist University has captured the Overall Cup, N.C. Wesleyan the Men's Cup, and Piedmont College the Women's Cup. This year marks the 11th year the USA South will present an Overall, a Men's, and a Women's Presidents Cup and the first in which three different institutions earned honors.
The USA South Athletic Conference Presidents Cup symbolizes the league's top men's and women's athletic program each year. The Presidents Cup is awarded by a points system where the first place team in each sport will be awarded the number of points that corresponds to the number of schools that sponsor teams in that sport. The second place team receives one point less than the first place team and so on, down to one point for the last place team that competes. Additionally, for all sports with the exception of football which has no post-season play, bonus points are up for grabs. The team winning the USA South Tournament Championship receives two bonus points for that sport while the runner-up receives one bonus point. In the sports of golf and cross country, the athlete placing first earns two bonus points for his/her institution while the runner-up earns one bonus point. If athletes from the same institution place first and second, that institution earns the two bonus points for the first place finish only.
Methodist laid claim to its third consecutive Overall Presidents Cup and the 11th in the institution's history. Methodist's lone regular season championship came in the sport of women's tennis, however the Monarchs finished in the top-four of four other sports and won the golf tournament title. The Monarchs captured the men's soccer and women's tennis tournament championships, finished as men's tennis tournament runners-up and had the golf tournament medalist to gain critical bonus points.
N.C. Wesleyan captured the Men's Presidents Cup for the second time in program history. The Bishops were regular season champions in men's basketball and men's tennis while finishing in the top-three in football and baseball. Additionally, N.C. Wesleyan's men's tennis tournament title gained much needed bonus points.
Piedmont's Women's Presidents Cup is the program's second. The Lions earned the softball regular season championship while finishing in the top-three of three additional sports. Piedmont captured the women's soccer tournament crown and was runners-up in two other sports to collect bonus points which added to its total.
The awarding of an Overall Presidents Cup began at the conclusion of the 1978-79 season. Following the 2004-05 season, the Conference presented separate Men's and Women's Presidents Cups in lieu of an Overall Cup. The following year the Conference reinstated the Overall Cup along with the Men's and Women's Cups.
The final 2015-2016 USA South Presidents Cup standings follow:
|
Final 2015-16 Overall Presidents Cup Standings |
|||||||||||||||
|
|
WXC |
MXC |
WS |
MS |
VB |
FB |
MBB |
WBB |
BB |
SB |
MT |
WT |
WL |
MG |
Total |
|
Methodist |
5 |
4 |
11 |
12 |
9 |
2 |
2 |
8 |
7.5 |
2 |
11 |
15 |
4 |
11 |
103.5 |
|
Piedmont |
7 |
6 |
14 |
3 |
7 |
- |
6 |
13 |
3 |
13 |
8 |
8 |
6 |
5 |
99.0 |
|
Maryville |
4 |
4 |
11 |
9 |
11 |
6.5 |
3 |
15 |
8.5 |
12 |
3 |
6 |
- |
2 |
95.0 |
|
Covenant |
9 |
7 |
9 |
6 |
14 |
- |
12 |
5 |
6 |
4 |
5 |
13 |
- |
- |
90.0 |
|
N.C. Wesleyan |
1 |
- |
7.5 |
8 |
4 |
6.5 |
11 |
5 |
9.5 |
10.5 |
13 |
11 |
- |
3 |
90.0 |
|
Averett |
3 |
2 |
4 |
7 |
13 |
4.5 |
4.5 |
7 |
4 |
11.5 |
9 |
5 |
- |
1 |
75.5 |
|
Ferrum |
- |
- |
6 |
5 |
6 |
2 |
7 |
11 |
11 |
9.5 |
6 |
2 |
2 |
4 |
71.5 |
|
LaGrange |
8 |
1 |
2 |
1.5 |
3 |
4.5 |
9.5 |
10 |
9.5 |
3 |
4 |
7 |
1 |
7 |
71.0 |
|
Huntingdon |
- |
- |
3 |
4 |
5 |
8 |
1 |
3 |
7 |
7.5 |
7 |
9 |
3 |
8 |
65.5 |
|
Greensboro |
- |
- |
7.5 |
12 |
2 |
2 |
8.5 |
9 |
2 |
7.5 |
1 |
1 |
6 |
6 |
64.5 |
|
Meredith |
11 |
- |
13 |
- |
11 |
- |
- |
5 |
- |
5 |
- |
10 |
9 |
- |
64.0 |
|
William Peace |
2 |
- |
5 |
1.5 |
8 |
- |
4.5 |
2 |
1 |
7.5 |
2 |
3 |
- |
- |
36.5 |
|
Mary Baldwin |
8 |
- |
1 |
- |
1 |
- |
- |
1 |
- |
1 |
- |
4 |
- |
- |
16.0 |
|
Final 2015-16 Men's Presidents Cup Standings |
||||||||
|
|
MXC |
MS |
FB |
MBB |
BB |
MT |
MG |
Total |
|
N.C. Wesleyan |
- |
8 |
6.5 |
11 |
9.5 |
13 |
3 |
51.0 |
|
Methodist |
4 |
12 |
2 |
2 |
7.5 |
11 |
11 |
49.5 |
|
LaGrange |
1 |
1.5 |
4.5 |
9.5 |
9.5 |
4 |
7 |
37.0 |
|
Covenant |
7 |
6 |
- |
12 |
6 |
5 |
- |
36.0 |
|
Maryville |
4 |
9 |
6.5 |
3 |
8.5 |
3 |
2 |
36.0 |
|
Ferrum |
- |
5 |
2 |
7 |
11 |
6 |
4 |
35.0 |
|
Huntingdon |
- |
4 |
8 |
1 |
7 |
7 |
8 |
35.0 |
|
Averett |
2 |
7 |
4.5 |
4.5 |
4 |
9 |
1 |
32.0 |
|
Greensboro |
- |
12 |
2 |
8.5 |
2 |
1 |
6 |
31.5 |
|
Piedmont |
6 |
3 |
- |
6 |
3 |
8 |
5 |
31.0 |
|
William Peace |
- |
1.5 |
- |
4.5 |
1 |
2 |
- |
9.0 |
|
Final 2015-16 Women's Presidents Cup Standings |
||||||||
|
|
WXC |
WS |
VB |
WBB |
SB |
WT |
WL |
Total |
|
Piedmont |
7 |
14 |
7 |
13 |
13 |
8 |
6 |
68.0 |
|
Meredith |
11 |
13 |
11 |
5 |
5 |
10 |
9 |
64.0 |
|
Maryville |
4 |
11 |
11 |
15 |
12 |
6 |
- |
59.0 |
|
Covenant |
9 |
9 |
14 |
5 |
4 |
13 |
- |
54.0 |
|
Methodist |
5 |
11 |
9 |
8 |
2 |
15 |
4 |
54.0 |
|
Averett |
3 |
4 |
13 |
7 |
11.5 |
5 |
- |
43.5 |
|
N.C. Wesleyan |
1 |
7.5 |
4 |
5 |
10.5 |
11 |
- |
39.0 |
|
Ferrum |
- |
6 |
6 |
11 |
9.5 |
2 |
2 |
36.5 |
|
LaGrange |
8 |
2 |
3 |
10 |
3 |
7 |
1 |
34.0 |
|
Greensboro |
- |
7.5 |
2 |
9 |
7.5 |
1 |
6 |
33.0 |
|
Huntingdon |
- |
3 |
5 |
3 |
7.5 |
9 |
3 |
30.5 |
|
William Peace |
2 |
5 |
8 |
2 |
7.5 |
3 |
- |
27.5 |
|
Mary Baldwin |
8 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
4 |
- |
16.0 |