Johnson & Wales Leads Way in Both 2019-20 GNAC Commissioner's Cup Standings

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

JWU programs claimed three team
titles, two runner-up finishes during fall

WINTHROP, Mass. – Following three total team titles in the fall season and as we have now entered the winter, Johnson & Wales University (RI) leads both the men's and women's standings of the 2019-20 Great Northeast Athletic Conference Commissioner's Cup Standings, as announced by the GNAC office on Friday afternoon.

The GNAC Commissioner's Cup annually recognizes the member institution achieving the highest level of athletic success throughout the academic year. It is based upon a point system and standings are determined by percentages in order to reflect the number of GNAC sports that each member sponsors.

Schools receive five points for winning a GNAC Championship, four points for advancing to a conference title game, three points for competing in a GNAC Semifinal, two points for qualifying for a GNAC Tournament, or one point for sponsoring the sport. 

For the complete standings, please see below.

JWU has won both the men's and women's GNAC Commissioner's Cups in the same year three different times in the award's history, with the most recent sweep coming in 2017-18. But the Wildcats missed out on both crowns last year, as the Saint Joseph's College of Maine men and Emmanuel College women claimed the respective honors.

In total, the JWU men have claimed at least a share of the title in 10 of the last 12 years, while the JWU women have won it three of the last five years. 

In the current men's standings, the Wildcats lead the way at 73.3% just narrowly ahead of Colby-Sawyer College and Norwich University, which are tied for second at 70%. Saint Joseph's of Maine and the University of St. Joseph (CT) took the fourth and fifth spots, respectively. Last month, JWU took down SJC to capture its first GNAC Men's Soccer Championship since 2005, and also eanred a second-place finish in men's golf back in October.

On the women's side, JWU owns a slight edge over Saint Joseph's of Maine by a 72% to 70% margin. The Wildcats won the GNAC Women's Soccer and Women's Volleyball Championships back on November 9 and also was the runner-up in the GNAC Women's Tennis Tournament, falling to associate member Eastern Nazarene.

Regis College sits in third place (55%), while Lasell University and Suffolk University rounded out the top-five in a fourth-place tie at an even 50%. 

Next year's Commissioner's Cup Standings will include Dean College as a full-time member, as the Bulldogs get set to begin GNAC play in 2020-21, with Suffolk exiting as a core member next fall. 

2019-20 Men's Standings
1. JWU: 11/15 = 73.3%
T2. Colby-Sawyer: 7/10 = 70%
T2. Norwich: 7/10 = 70% 
4. Saint Joseph's (Maine): 10/15 = 66.67%
5. St. Joseph (Conn.): 5/10 = 50%
T6. Albertus Magnus: 4/10 = 40%
T6. Emmanuel: 6/15 = 40% 
T6. Lasell: 4/10 = 40% 
T6. Suffolk: 6/15 = 40%
10. Regis: 3/10 = 30%
T11. Anna Maria: 1/5 = 20% 
T11. Rivier: 2/10 = 20% 

2019-20 Women's Standings
1. JWU: 18/25 = 72%
2. Saint Joseph's (Maine): 14/20 = 70% 
3. Regis: 11/20 = 55% 
T4. Lasell: 10/20 = 50% 
T4. Suffolk: 10/20 = 50%
6. Simmons: 12/25 = 48%
7. Colby-Sawyer: 11/25 = 44% 
T8. Emmanuel: 6/15 = 40% 
T8. Rivier: 8/20 = 40% 
10. St. Joseph (Conn.): 7/20 = 35% 
11. Norwich: 5/15 = 33.3% 
12. Anna Maria: 4/15 = 26.67%
13. Albertus Magnus: 5/20 = 25% 

The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 13 member institutions and over 3,000 student-athletes across the New England region. Founded in 1995, the GNAC annually sponsors and administers 22 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunity and community involvement in an effort to enhance the student-athlete experience. 

– #TheGNAC –