Miami Ohio University Athletics
Miami Women's Teams Capture 2008 Jacoby Trophy
5/28/2008 12:00:00 AM | General
May 28, 2008
CHICAGO - The Mid-American Conference announced today that Miami University's women's athletic teams are the recipients of the prestigious Jacoby Trophy for 2007-08, emblematic of the league's best overall athletic performance. MAC Commissioner Rick Chryst handed out honors at the spring meetings in downtown Chicago. Athletic director Brad Bates and associate A.D. Jennie Gilbert accepted the award on behalf of the RedHawks.
The Miami women captured the award for the third time in program history and for the first time since 1997. The Jacoby Award was instituted in 1983, the year when the RedHawks won their initial trophy.
"We are extremely proud of winning the Jacoby Trophy," said Bates. "To challenge for this award, a school has to be consistently competitive across the board, and that was certainly the key to our success. Additionally, our female student-athletes have excelled in the classroom in 2007-08, compiling a cumulative grade point average of 3.14. We salute their incredible athletic and academic accomplishments of this past season, as well as the exceptional contributions of the coaches and support staff."
Miami finished second in volleyball, basketball and tennis, third in cross country, field hockey and indoor track and field, fourth in softball and swimming and diving, and tied for eighth in soccer. Both volleyball and basketball earned MAC Tournament Championships, though these titles did not figure into the Jacoby tabulation.
Miami's average score of 9.667 outdistanced runner-up Ohio, which registered at 9.50. Kent State was third with an average of 8.88.
The Eastern Michigan University men's athletic program was honored as the recipient of the Reese Trophy for having the best overall athletic teams during the 2007-08 academic year. Miami's men's teams placed fifth in this year's Reese standings.
Points are awarded based on each school's finish, with the overall total divided by the number of sports sponsored by each school. An institution may count either indoor track and field or outdoor track and field but not both.
The Jacoby Trophy is named for former MAC Commissioner Fred Jacoby. He was the MAC Commissioner from 1971-82 and is credited with incorporating women's athletics into the league's structure.
