June 7, 2010

ELMHURST, Ill. - Oakland University posted a third-place finish in the annual Summit League Commissioner's Cup Standings with 92.5 points, behind nine-time first-place finisher Oral Roberts University (109) and South Dakota State University (100.5), announced by the league office on Monday. The third-place finish is the highest for the Golden Grizzlies since joining the league in 1999-2000.

"We are very pleased with the way our teams competed during the 2009-10 seasons," said Director of Athletics Tracy Huth. "Every year we have a goal to win the commissioner's cup and we continue to get closer and closer. We strive to be excellent in and out of the classroom and this proves that we are on the right path."

The Golden Grizzlies claimed Summit League championships in men's basketball, men's soccer, along with men's and women's swimming and diving. OU finished runner-up in the league standings in women's basketball.

In the Dr. William Steinbrecher Men's All Sports Award Standings Oakland finished second behind Oral Roberts with 50 and 44.5 points, respectively. The Golden Grizzlies finished fourth in the Dr. Helen Smiley Women's All Sports Award Standings with 48 points, behind North Dakota State University (62), SDSU (60.5) and ORU (59). The second-place finish in the Men's All Sports Standings was the highest-ever for the Grizzlies.

A look at OU finishes sport by sport:
Men's Cross Country (3rd), Women's Cross Country (4th), Men's Soccer (1st), Women's Soccer (6th), Volleyball (T-4th), Men's Swimming and Diving (1st), Women's Swimming and Diving (1st), Men's Indoor Track and Field (5th), Women's Indoor Track and Field (6th), Men's Basketball (1st), Women's Basketball (T-2nd), Men's Tennis (No Team), Women's Tennis (8th), Men's Golf (T-5th), Women's Golf (7th), Softball (7th), Baseball (4th), Men's Outdoor Track and Field (7th) and Women's Outdoor Track and Field (5th).

The Commissioner's Cup is given annually to the member institution that collects the most combined points in relationship to placement in league-sponsored sports between its men's and women's athletic programs, while the All Sports Awards are given to the institutions that accumulate the most points in men's sports and women's sports. The men's award is named for former Valparaiso Director of Athletics Dr. William Steinbrecher, who guided the Crusaders from 1979-2004, while the women's award is named for former Western Illinois Director of Athletics Dr. Helen Smiley, who headed WIU's athletic program from 1994-2001.

Commissioner's Cup Standings
Place   School                 Points1.  Oral Roberts            109.02.  South Dakota State  100.53.  Oakland                  92.54.  North Dakota State   90.55.  Southern Utah            76.06.  UMKC                     75.57.  Western Illinois     74.08.  IUPUI                    66.09.  IPFW                     63.510. Centenary            32.5
Dr. Helen Smiley Women's All Sports Award Standings
Place   School                Points1.  North Dakota State  62.02.  South Dakota State  60.53.  Oral Roberts            59.04.  Oakland                 48.05.  Southern Utah           45.06.  Western Illinois    43.07.  UMKC                    42.08.  IPFW                    41.59.  IUPUI                   37.010. Centenary           14.0
Dr. William Steinbrecher Men's All Sports Award Standings
Place   School                Points1.  Oral Roberts            50.02.  Oakland                 44.53.  South Dakota State  40.04.  UMKC                    33.55.  Southern Utah           31.0    Western Illinois    31.07.  IUPUI                   29.08.  North Dakota State  28.59.  IPFW                    22.010. Centenary           18.5