UC Santa Barbara Wins Fifth Consecutive Big West Commissioner's Cup

The UC Santa Barbara men's soccer team was the 2004 NCAA national runner-up.

Senior Kristen Mann helped the UC Santa Barbara women's basketball team to its 10th straight Big West Championship.

UC Santa Barbara won Big West titles in women’s cross country, men’s soccer, and women’s volleyball, and tied for another in women’s soccer during the fall season to open a commanding lead in the 2004-05 Commissioner’s Cup race that would never vanish. UC Santa Barbara added a Big West women’s basketball title during the winter season, and won a women’s track and field title during the spring to finish with 2180 Commissioner’s Cup points, and a 136.3 point average.

UC Santa Barbara's six conference championships are the most titles won by a Big West school in a calendar season in which the Commissioner’s Cup has been presented.

Long Beach State finished second in the Commissioner’s Cup standings for the third straight year, ending with 1640 points for a 126.2 average. The 49ers climbed to a second place finish after an impressive spring season in which they won Big West titles in softball and women’s tennis. Long Beach State also claimed second-place finishes in women’s golf and baseball to earn a spring season-high 950 Commissioner’s Cup points.

Pacific placed third in the standings with 1320 points and a 110.0 average. The Tigers won Big West championships in men’s swimming and diving and men’s basketball, and finished second in women’s volleyball, women’s swimming and diving, and men’s and women’s tennis. UC Irvine finished fourth in the standings with a 100.6 point average after taking conference titles in women’s swimming and diving, men’s tennis, and women’s golf.

Utah State, which was second in the Commissioner's Cup standings after the fall and winter seasons, fell to fifth place in the standings with an average of 96.7. Cal Poly (96.5) finished two tenths of a point behind Utah State for the sixth place spot, and Cal State Fullerton upped its average to 95.0 by adding a baseball championship to its women’s soccer title to finish seventh. Idaho (87.7), Cal State Northridge (85.0), and UC Riverside (67.3) rounded out the final three spots in the standings.

To determine the champion for the Commissioner's Cup, total points are summed and divided by the number of championships in which each institution competes. Each sport champion is also given a 20-point bonus. The Commissioner’s Cup is then awarded to the school with the highest average.

The Big West Conference Commissioner's Cup was started during the 1998-99 season. In the seven-year history of the award, Pacific claimed the first two Big West Commissioner’s Cups, and UC Santa Barbara has won the last five trophies.

Commissioner’s Cup Winners

1998-99 – Pacific
1999-00 – Pacific
2000-01 – UC Santa Barbara
2001-02 – UC Santa Barbara
2002-03 – UC Santa Barbara
2003-04 – UC Santa Barbara
2004-05 – UC Santa Barbara

2004-05 SEASON-BY-SEASON BREAKDOWNS