Loyola Leads McCafferty Trophy Standings After Fall Season

INDIANAPOLIS -- With Horizon League championships in both men’s and women’s cross country, Loyola University took the top spot in the McCafferty Trophy standings after the fall sports season.

With 19 points, the Ramblers lead Chicago rival UIC by three points heading into the winter sports season.

Loyola, which never has won the McCafferty Trophy in its 34-year Horizon League membership, earned the majority of its points in the first championship of the year, collecting its first men’s cross country title since 1997 and first women’s crown since 2008.

The Ramblers collected additional points by virtue of their runner-up finish in men’s soccer and semifinal appearance in the women’s volleyball championship.

With a runner-up finish in women’s cross country and volleyball, UIC leads the women’s sports total with 10 points. The Flames were the Horizon League runner-up in men’s country.

Horizon League championships in men’s soccer and volleyball carried Cleveland State into a tie for third in the McCafferty Trophy standings, while Detroit matched the Vikings’ total by claiming a share of both men’s and women’s soccer regular season titles.

Milwaukee, which claimed its sixth McCafferty Trophy last year, sits fifth overall with 10 points. The Panthers won their fifth straight Horizon League women’s soccer tournament after claiming a share of their 14th consecutive regular season title.

With seven points, Valparaiso is sixth, while Wright State and Youngstown State are tied for seventh with four points each. Green Bay rounds out the standings with two points.

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.

McCafferty Trophy Standings
Rank    School                                    Points
1.          Loyola                                    19
2.          UIC                                         16
3.          Cleveland State                   14
             Detroit                                    14
5.          Milwaukee                            10
6.          Valparaiso                            7
7.          Wright State                          4
             Youngstown State               4
9.          Green Bay                             2

Men’s Sports Totals
Rank    School                                    Points
1.          Loyola                                    10
2.          Cleveland State                    7
             Detroit                                     7
4.          UIC                                         6
5.          Milwaukee                             3
6.          Valparaiso                             2
7.          Wright State                          1
8.          Green Bay                             0
             Youngstown State               0

Women’s Sports Totals
Rank    School                                    Points
1.          UIC                                          10
2.          Loyola                                     9
3.          Cleveland State                    7
             Detroit                                     7
             Milwaukee                              7
6.          Valparaiso                             5
7.          Youngstown State                4
8.          Wright State                           3
9.          Green Bay                              2