CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – Southeast Missouri claimed its second Ohio Valley Conference Commissioner's Cup in three years during a remarkable 2022-23 campaign which saw the Redhawks win eight conference championships.
The OVC Commissioner's Cup is a symbol of overall athletic excellence in Conference-sponsored championships and is awarded annually to one member institution.
"This is a major accomplishment. Winning the Commissioner's Cup takes everyone. From the University administration, to the coaches and staff, to the student-athletes, to our supporters. We couldn't have achieved this high level of success without all of these groups buying into our vision," said Director of Athletics Brady Barke.
SEMO celebrated titles in football (regular-season), women's indoor track & field, women's outdoor track & field, men's outdoor track & field, men's basketball (tournament), softball (regular-season) and women's tennis (regular-season & tournament).
In all, the Redhawks accumulated 102 points defeating Tennessee Tech (90.5) by a +11.5 margin to win this year's trophy. Eastern Illinois (89), first-year OVC member Little Rock (86.5) and UT Martin (83.5) rounded out the top five.
Tennessee State (63.5), SIU Edwardsville (61.5), Morehead State (61.5), first-year member Southern Indiana (57) and fellow first-year affiliate Lindenwood (46.5) completed the scoring.
SEMO's football team won its third OVC title and made its fourth NCAA Football Championship Subdivision Playoff appearance in program history, while the Redhawk men's basketball team won its first OVC Tournament in over two decades. The Redhawks posted four victories in four days to get its first OVC Tournament Championship and NCAA Tournament berth since 1999-2000. SEMO was among only three schools in the nation to make both the FCS Playoffs and NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament along with Furman and Montana State.
The Redhawks added six more championships in the spring. SEMO's women's track & field team won its first indoor title in 10 years. During the outdoor season, the Redhawks swept the men's and women's track & field titles for the fifth time in program history.
SEMO's softball team notched its third OVC regular-season title in four years when it swept UT Martin (Apr. 29-30). The Redhawks ripped through their league schedule going 20-2 en route to earning the top seed in the OVC Tournament. SEMO also went undefeated at home for the second-straight season keeping its 30-game winning streak at the Southeast Softball Complex intact.
Meanwhile, the women's tennis team swept both the OVC regular-season and tournament crowns for the first time in program history. SEMO put together a record of 17-3 during its best season since women's tennis began in 1991-92. The Redhawks hoisted the OVC Tournament trophy and made the NCAA Tournament for the second year in a row.
The Redhawks won the OVC Commissioner's Cup for the first time in their Athletics' history in 2020-21. Prior to that, SEMO was in first place following the winter championships during the 2019-20 campaign when the honor was not awarded due to COVID.
Since the start of the 2019 calendar year, SEMO has won 25 conference championships, most in the OVC. The Redhawks qualified for every conference championship event this season. SEMO won a staggering six OVC titles per season over the last four years alone.
The OVC Commissioner's Cup (which initially started in 1962-63 for men's sports and 1980-81 for women's sports) was previously divided into a Men's All-Sport Champion and a Women's All-Sport Champion. Points were awarded for each of the 18 sponsored sports and each school was required to count its totals from each sport in its grand total. SEMO won seven Women's All-Sport Trophies including six-straight from 1994-95 through 1999-00.
Under the latest scoring system, points are distributed based on the number of schools that sponsor that sport (for example, if 10 schools sponsor a sport, the champion will earn 10 points, 9 points for second place, 8 points for third place, etc.). The exception is football for 2022, which receives a maximum of 10 points (in 2023-24, the OVC-Big South Association will have 10 teams).
Schools are required to count finishes for 13 sports. Schools are required to count three main sports (volleyball, men's basketball, women's basketball) in their total, plus one male track & field sport and one female track & field sport of their choosing (cross country, indoor track, or outdoor track). Schools that sponsor football are required to count that sport.
Tournament champions (men's basketball, women's basketball, volleyball, baseball, softball, soccer, men's tennis, women's tennis, and beach volleyball) receive one additional point added to their total points earned for that sport. Men's tennis competes in a six-team "South" Division with the Horizon League and the points breakdown is based on division standings.
All-Time Commissioner's Cup Winners
2008-09 – Murray State
2009-10 – Eastern Illinois
2010-11 – Eastern Illinois
2011-12 – Eastern Kentucky
2012-13 – Eastern Illinois
2013-14 – Eastern Kentucky
2014-15 – Eastern Kentucky
2015-16 – Eastern Kentucky
2016-17 – Eastern Kentucky
2017-18 – Eastern Kentucky
2018-19 – Murray State
2019-20 – Not Awarded Due to COVID-19 pandemic
2020-21 – Southeast Missouri
2021-22 – Belmont
2022-23 – Southeast Missouri
