Women's Soccer 10/28/2019 12:00:00 PM Chris Brannick

UCO Soccer Earns Prestigious Award

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The University of Central Oklahoma soccer team earned the United Soccer Coaches inaugural Team Pinnacle Award, landing the Bronchos in the top two percent of women's soccer programs in the country.

READ THE USC RELEASE HERE

"We are honored of the team for this accomplishment," UCO head soccer coach Mike Cook said. "It is truly a complete team award that recognizes all the different aspects you need to do to be a successful student-athlete and program. We are always striving to provide that for our student-athletes. It's good to be recognized for excelling and giving the student-athletes a well-rounded college experience."

Central Oklahoma's 2018 team was recognized for their sportsmanship, academics, and its success on the field. The Bronchos are one of three out of over 300 Division II schools to be honored and one of only 17 NCAA women's soccer teams to garner this new recognition.

For a team to be eligible, it must have received the Platinum, Gold, Silver or Bronze version of the College Team Ethics and Sportsmanship Award. UCO earned the Gold Award. A team must have achieved recognition in the classroom as a recipient of the College Team Academic Award. Central made that list too with its 3.46 GPA. And a team must have a winning percentage of .750 or higher during the respective season. The Bronchos had a .916 win percentage.

The coaches organization shared this in its release.

"This prestigious new team award designed to recognize a combination of academics, sportsmanship and athletic excellence may be the most difficult award to achieve for any soccer program," said Steve Veal, United Soccer Coaches Awards Manager. "The award was proposed by Mike Lynch, Women's Coach at Belmont Abbey College (N.C.) and chair of our Faith-Based Coaches Advocacy Group, and approved by our Awards Committee. A special thanks to Mike and Tom Gerlach, Boys and Girls Coach at Christ Presbyterian Academy in Nashville, Tenn., who chaired the College and High School Committees respectively for their vision and service."

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