University Relations
June 26, 2008 Communique
UCCS leaders to accept Steel and Silver series award
The first presentation of a traveling trophy between UCCS and Colorado State University-Pueblo is scheduled for 3 p.m. July 1 on one of Colorado Springs’ busiest street corners.
Chancellor Pam Shockley-Zalabak will accept the trophy from CSU-Pueblo President Joseph Garcia, in front of Rutledge’s, 102 N. Tejon, to mark UCCS Mountain Lion victory in the annual Steel and Silver contest between the schools.
The contest awards points to the winner of games between the schools in six men’s and women’s sports and a five-point bonus to the university whose student-athletes have the best grades. Mountain Lion teams won this year’s contest with a score of 22-9, including the coveted five-point grade bonus. UCCS teams prevailed in women’s volleyball, women’s softball, and men’s golf. CSU-Pueblo teams prevailed in women’s basketball and men’s soccer. The schools were even in men’s basketball.
“I am extraordinarily proud of the accomplishments of UCCS student-athletes on the field and in the classroom,” Shockley-Zalabak said. “It will be an honor for me to accept this trophy in recognition of their accomplishments on behalf of the university. I also want to congratulate the athletes at CSU-Pueblo who have contributed to this spirited rivalry”
The Steel and Silver series is three years old. But the traveling trophy, created by Joan Aaland, Colorado Springs, is new. The 18-inch-high, 80-pound bronze and mahogany trophy features a beam representing Pueblo’s steel production history and a pick axe representing the mining history of Colorado Springs with a wolf and a mountain lion. The trophy will be awarded to the annual winner of the series.
In addition to Pamela Shockley-Zalabak and Garcia, representatives from the Mountain Lion and the Thunderwolf athletic programs will attend in addition to other university officials
The Steel and Silver series was named in recognition of the economic history of the cities where the universities are located. Pueblo was one of the largest steel production centers in the West, while Colorado Springs served as a hub for the hard-rock miners in the area.
UCCS fields 13 men’s and women’s NCAA Division II athletic teams and is a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. For more information, visit www.gomountainlions.com.