John Carroll Takes Winter All-Sports Lead

CLEVELAND, OH -- John Carroll University posted six top-four finishes this winter, which included one NCAC championship, to build a slim lead in the race for the 2025-26 North Coast Athletic Conference All-Sports Championship.

The Blue Streaks earned the women's indoor track & field title after recording 166 points at the conference championship. JCU finished the men's basketball and women's basketball regular seasons tied for second, placed third at both the men's swimming & diving and men's indoor track & field championships and finished fourth at the women's swimming & diving championships. With those finishes, the Blue Streaks accumulated 56 all-sport points during the winter season and now hold a narrow 115.5-114.0 lead over fall-sports leader DePauw in the race for the coveted Dennis M. Collins All-Sports Trophy. The Indiana Tigers, who racked up 50.5 all-sports points in the winter season, finished in the top five in all six winter sports, tying for second in men's basketball, placing third in both women's indoor track & field and women's swimming & diving, taking fourth in both women's basketball and men's swimming & diving and and earning fifth in men's track & field.

Denison, which captured its third-consecutive men's basketball championship, first women's basketball crown since 2016 and 15th overall men's swimming & diving title, sits in third with 111.5 points. Kenyon is fourth with 89.0 points after winning its league-leading 30th women's swimming & diving championship and collecting a runner-up finish at the men's swimming & diving championship. Ohio Wesleyan sits just one-half point behind the Owls in fifth with 88.5 points after the Battling Bishops tied for second in women's basketball and earned a runner-up finish at the women's track & field championship. Wittenberg holds sixth place, one-half point behind the Bishops with 88.0 points after winning its third-consecutive men's indoor track & field championship. The Ohio Tigers were followed by Wooster in seventh (71.5), Oberlin in eighth (66.0), and Wabash in ninth (46.0).

The All-Sports champion earns the Dennis M. Collins All-Sports Trophy, given annually to the school that performs the best across the NCAC's 23 sports. Eleven points are awarded for a first-place finish, ten for a second, nine for a third, and so on. Men's and women's performances are combined, exemplifying the North Coast's commitment to equity and balance among programs. Wooster won three of the first four All-Sports championships, interrupted only by Denison in year two. Ohio Wesleyan followed with a six-year run, leading to titles by Wooster (twice), Wittenberg (once), Denison (nine), OWU (twice), and then a tie between Denison and OWU in 2009. Wittenberg earned its second All-Sports title in 2010, followed by Denison in 2011 and DePauw in 2012. Denison then claimed back-to-back titles in 2013 and 2014, before DePauw regained the championship in 2015. The Big Red reclaimed the title after the 2015-16 academic year, followed by DePauw in 2017 before Denison once again earned back-to-back titles the next two years. An all-sports trophy was not awarded in 2020 or 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Big Red then secured four-straight titles from 2022-25 to collect the last six trophies.

Denison leads the way with 192 team championships during the NCAC's 42 playing seasons. Ohio Wesleyan is next with 167 titles, followed by Kenyon (144), Wittenberg (128), Allegheny (119), Wooster (85), DePauw (52), Wabash (36), Oberlin (27) Case Western Reserve (9), John Carroll (4) and Hiram and Earlham (2).
 

North Coast Athletic Conference 
2025-26 All-Sports Standings
(Winter Update)
   OVERALL STANDINGS      
Men's Standings 1. John Carroll   115.5 Women's Standings
1. John Carroll   56.0 2. DePauw 114.0  T1. Denison 61.5
2.  DePauw 52.5 3. Denison 111.5  T1.  DePauw 61.5
3. Denison 50.0 4. Kenyon 89.0  3.  John Carroll 59.5
4. Wabash 46.0 5. Ohio Wesleyan 88.5  4.  Ohio Wesleyan 58.5
5. Kenyon 40.5 6. Wittenberg 88.0  5.  Wittenberg 52.5
6. Wittenberg 35.5 7. Wooster 71.5  6.  Kenyon 48.5
7. Wooster 35.0 8. Oberlin 66.0  7.  Wooster 36.5
8. Oberlin 32.5 9. Wabash* 46.0  8.  Oberlin 33.5
9.  Ohio Wesleyan 30.0 * - Wabash is an all-male institution

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