Wingate Captures Sixth-Consecutive Echols Athletic Excellence Award

ROCK HILL, S.C. - For the sixth year in a row, Wingate University has won the SAC Echols Athletic Excellence Award, which is presented annually to the member athletic department that earns the highest point total based on cumulative final standings in each of the conference's sports.

Regular-season finish is used in the sports of men's and women's soccer, volleyball, football, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's tennis, baseball and softball, while SAC Championship results are used for men's and women's cross country and men's and women's golf.

Wingate topped the award's 2011-12 standings with a final total of 110 points. The Bulldogs led in the standings following the winter sports season, then furthered their margin with SAC titles in men's golf and men's tennis and a co-championship in women's tennis.

WU also finished fourth in baseball, fifth in women's golf and seventh in softball in the spring.

SAC women's tennis co-champion Anderson was second in the Echols Award standings with a total of 89.5 points. The Trojans were in third place heading into the spring season, but used strong tennis performances from both their men's and women's programs and a third-place finish in softball to vault into the No. 2 position.

Tusculum - which won the SAC baseball regular-season title - finished third in the standings, followed by conference softball champion Lenoir-Rhyne at No. 4.

TC finished with 84.5 points, followed by L-R with 81.

Lincoln Memorial came in fifth in the final Award standings, 2.5 points ahead of SAC women's golf champion Newberry.

Carson-Newman ended the 2011-12 season at No. 7 in the standings, followed by No. 8 Catawba, No. 9 Mars Hill and No. 10 Brevard.

The Echols Athletic Excellence Award, named after former SAC Commissioner Doug Echols, will be presented at the conference's Hall of Fame banquet on June 7.

SAC Echols Athletic Excellence Award - Final Standings