Cowley College finishes ninth in NATYCAA Cup standings

Continuing to demonstrate tremendous success in athletics, Cowley College finished ninth during the 2007-08 season in the NATYCAA (National Alliance of Two-Year College Athletic Administrators) Cup standings, which recognizes excellence in two-year college athletics.

The NATYCAA Cup program was begun in 2004 and was previously sponsored by Pepsi. This program recognizes excellence in two-year college athletics based on success in championship competition.

Points for the NATYCAA Cup are calculated based on each colleges finish at NJCAA Tournaments. Each first place finish is worth 20 points, second place 19, third 18, and so on. Total scores for both men’s and women’s programs are combined for their total score.

Cowley finished second in the NATYCAA Cup standings a year ago.

“Our goal is to win it, but it was still a great year for our athletic programs,” Cowley College athletic director Tom Saia said. “So many of our athletic programs were close to qualifying for nationals.”

Fellow Jayhawk Conference school Johnson County Community College won the NJCAA Scholarship Division, scoring 142 points. Cowley finished with 103.5 points.

In the fall, the Lady Tiger volleyball team placed fifth at the national tournament. While, the Cowley men’s cross country team placed fifth and the women’s team finished eighth nationally.

This spring, the Tiger men and women’s indoor track and field teams each placed eighth at the national meet. Cowley’s women and men’s outdoor track and field teams placed eighth and 11th, respectively.
Cowley’s tennis teams also had successful seasons as the men’s team placed 11th and the women’s team finished 20th nationally.

Also performing well, but coming up just short of qualifying for nationals were the Tiger basketball teams and baseball and softball teams.

The Tiger men’s basketball team won a school-record 31 games and advanced to the Region VI title game before losing. While, the Lady Tiger basketball team won 21 games and advanced to the third-round of the Region VI Tournament.

The Lady Tiger softball team captured its fifth straight conference title and advanced to the Region VI title game before losing to Johnson County.

The Cowley baseball team won its second straight Jayhawk East title and won its first two games at the Region VI Tournament before being eliminated.

Saia is excited about the 2008-09 athletic seasons.

“I look for another great year in all of our athletic programs,” Saia said.