PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Plymouth State University has earned the Little East Conference (LEC) Presidents’ Cup for the 2023-24 academic year, announced LEC Commissioner Pamela S. Samuelson, PhD. Plymouth State’s student-athletes from its 19 athletic programs that compete in the conference completed the year with a 3.36 average cumulative GPA. The formal presentation of the LEC Presidents’ Cup will take place at the October 2024 LEC athletic directors council meetings.
The LEC Presidents’ Cup measures the highest average cumulative grade point average among the student-athletes from the Conference’s nine primary member institutions that compete in the league’s 21 championship sport offerings.
"We couldn't be prouder of our PSU Panthers, who play to win both as athletic competitors and in their academic disciplines," said Plymouth State University President Donald L. Birx, PhD. "The leadership and teamwork skills they've gained are a result of much hard work and dedication."
This marks the second LEC Presidents’ Cup win for the Panthers in the award’s 15-year history, with their first following the 2017-18 academic year. Plymouth State has finished no-lower than third in the LEC Presidents’ Cup standings the past nine years, and its 3.36 average cumulative GPA this year is tied for the highest in the award’s history, matching the 3.36 average cumulative GPA posted by Eastern Connecticut State University in 2020-21.
“I could not be prouder of our student-athletes for winning the LEC Presidents’ Cup this year,” said Plymouth State Director of Athletics Kim Bownes. “They are here for an education first and foremost, and while they all want to win on the field of play, their future degree is the most important piece of being here. Our student-athletes are competitive, so having the President’s Cup really inspires them to want to have the best GPA amongst our own teams.”
All but one of Plymouth State’s 19 programs currently competing in the LEC posted an average cumulative GPA of 3.00 or better, with 15 programs posting an average cumulative GPA of at least 3.30 and six programs recording an average cumulative GPA of at least 3.50. The Panthers’ women’s cross country team led the way with a 3.70 average cumulative GPA, while the men’s sports were led by the men’s cross country team (3.55).
“Congratulations Plymouth State University on earning the LEC’s most prestigious honor for the second time in the award’s history,” said Samuelson. “Plymouth State has consistently finished among the LEC’s leaders in the Presidents’ Cup rankings, which is a testament to the work and support of so many members of its campus community.”
Five of the LEC’s nine member institutions have won the Presidents’ Cup in its history - Eastern Connecticut, Keene State College, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, Plymouth State and Vermont State University Castleton. Eastern Connecticut holds the record for the most LEC Presidents’ Cup wins with seven.
2023-24 LEC Presidents’ Cup Standings
1. Plymouth State - 3.36
2. Southern Maine - 3.30
3. Vermont State Castleton - 3.28
4. Eastern Connecticut - 3.26
T5. UMass Boston - 3.18
T5. UMass Dartmouth - 3.18
7. Keene State - 3.11
8. Rhode Island College 3.02
9. Western Connecticut - 2.97
About the Little East Conference
The Little East Conference (LEC) was formed in 1986 when six public institutions gathered to create a single sport athletic conference, and has expanded into what is now New England’s premier athletic conference for public institutions in NCAA Division III. The LEC features 21 championship sports and sponsors quality competition for our student-athletes, while following the Division III mission of “passion, responsibility, sportsmanship and citizenship.”
The Little East consists of nine primary institutions that encompass all six New England states – Eastern Connecticut State University, Keene State College (N.H.), UMass Boston, UMass Dartmouth, Plymouth State University (N.H.), Rhode Island College, University of Southern Maine, Vermont State University Castleton, and Western Connecticut State University.