Vulcans move to second in Dixon standings

LOCK HAVEN, Pa. (March 23) - Following a successful winter season, California University of Pennsylvania moved up to second place in the latest edition of the 2009-10 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Dixon Trophy standings, which were released by the league office on Tuesday.

The Vulcans have now totaled 124 overall points after earning 49.5 points from their five winter sports - men's and women's basketball, swimming and men's and women's indoor track & field.

Cal U earned a winter-best 15 points from the women's basketball program after the team advanced to the championship game of the PSAC Tournament for a league-record 10th-straight season.

In the pool, the Vulcans collected 11 points after finishing fifth at the PSAC Championships last month. The Cal U swimming team qualified six swimmers for the NCAA Championships this season and finished in the Top 20 at the national race for the second-straight year.

The Cal U women's indoor track & field season posted its best finish in program history, earning 10 points after placing sixth at the PSAC Championships. The Vulcans virtually rewrote the school record break this winter, setting eight new records during the indoor season.

The Vulcan men's basketball finished with 7.5 points for a second-straight year, while the men's indoor track & field team totaled six points.

Shippensburg maintained its lead in the Dixon Trophy standings with 138 points after winning the conference title in women's indoor track & field. Cal U (124) holds a one-point lead over Bloomsburg (123) for second place, while West Chester (121.5) and Kutztown (124) round out top-five teams.

Seven different institutions have won the Dixon Trophy, led by Shippensburg with five. The other schools are: Lock Haven (three), Bloomsburg (two), Cal U (one), Kutztown (one) Millersville (one) and Slippery Rock (one).

The Dixon Trophy is awarded annually since the 1995-96 academic year by the PSAC to a member institution whose athletic program earns the best overall finish in conference championships and/or regular-season play. During the course of the academic year, points are awarded based on an institution's finish in the 22 conference sports. Only a school's best 12 finishes, six men's and six women's, are used in the final calculation of the Dixon Trophy standings.

The final eight league championships will take place this spring, including baseball, women's golf, women's lacrosse, softball, men's and women's tennis and men's and women's outdoor track & field. The announcement of this year's Dixon Trophy winner is scheduled for May 18 at the PSAC Award Luncheon in Harrisburg, Pa.