Loveland has many talented athletic teams and lots of students enjoy attending games. No matter the outcome, the competition is the most exciting part. However, there is one athletic competition that most students don’t know about: the ECC All-Sports Trophy. This trophy is not very well known, but it can be just as exciting as attending sports games.
The ECC All-Sports Trophy was first awarded in the 2012-2013 school year, the inaugural year of the Eastern Cincinnati Conference. In 2010, Loveland and 6 other schools announced that they would be breaking off from their previous conference, the Fort Ancient Valley Conference, to create a new conference. Loveland was in the FAVC for 14 years.
This trophy is an award that adds up points based on what place each team came in within their respective sport. “Every ECC varsity sport gets points based on their final placement that season,” Brian Conatser, Loveland’s former Athletic Director explained. The point system works like this: 1st place receives 11pts, 2nd place receives 9pts, 3rd place receives 8pts, 4th place receives 8pts, 5th place receives 6pts, 6th place receives 5pts, 7th place receives 4pts, 8th place receives 3pts, 9th place receives 2pts and 10th receives 1pt. If you do not have a team in that sport, you receive a zero. The points are added up for each sport in each season to calculate your school’s total points for the year.
Some new schools have been added to the conference since the Eastern Cincinnati Conference was created. Little Miami, Lebanon, and Winton Woods were added for the 2019-2020 seasons, along with Withrow’s withdrawal from the ECC in 2020. These new schools have created greater competition within the Easter Cincinnati Conference. Lebanon has been making its way up into a podium finish for the All-Sports Award in the past few years, however, Loveland has always finished in the top 3.
The ECC All-Sports Trophy isn’t just about getting as many points as possible; it’s a great way to build school unity. Conatser said this trophy “builds a competitive environment within your sports programs at your school to promote school pride and support.” Students supporting students can create a more competitive and exciting environment for everyone, even those not playing a sport. It is very common for athletes in different sports to attend other sporting events to support their school to get more points in the race for the trophy. Students find themselves getting involved more through supporting other athletic teams.
Loveland has held this award five years out of the ten it has existed (which is more than any other school in the conference). However, Loveland is in a conference with many other athletically talented schools. Milford, Kings and Turpin are always top contenders for this trophy.
Photo courtesy of Eastern Cincinnati Conference
Last year, Loveland came in 3rd with 186 points, behind Kings with 186.5 points and Milford with 193 points. This year the Tigers are looking for their 6th win of the ECC All-Sports Trophy, so get out there and support the athletic teams!