VESTAL, N.Y. – The 21 Binghamton varsity teams took part in the first-ever Athletics Alumni Giving Challenge, competing against each other to raise funds for their sports and the athletics department. The inaugural competition was highly successful for the department and left three teams as the biggest winners.
 
The Athletics Alumni Giving Challenge was held from Sept. 12-30 and was made possible by the generosity of William H. Groner '77, who sponsored the event. The goal of the competition was to increase participation among former Binghamton student-athletes who contribute to the Athletics Department.
 
"We would like to thank the more than 630 alumni athletes that contributed to the Giving Challenge," Binghamton Athletic Director Patrick Elliott said. "It was tremendous to see so much pride from our former student athletes toward their alma mater. Our current student-athletes appreciate the efforts of those individuals who continue to pave the way for their current opportunities."
 
The top three Binghamton athletic programs that had the highest participation rate received prizes. A formula that took into account the number of donors of a specific team and the total number of alumni for that program was used to determine the participation rate.
 
Men's lacrosse, under the direction of first-year head coach Kevin McKeown's claimed the $5,000 first place prize with over 41.72% of their alumni donating. McKeown is a 2006 graduate of Binghamton and was inducted into the athletic department's Hall of Fame in 2014.

"Our men's lacrosse alums have always supported us well," McKeown said. "This award is great because our current players got to see that so many alumni who have come through our program really still care about it."

In second place with a 27.04% participation rate was the golf program, which earned $2,000. The wrestling program had a 23.35% participation rate and earned the third-place prize of $1,000.
 
Click here for complete results.
 
Of the 630 gifts from Binghamton athletics alumni, there were over 230 young alumni donors.
 
To support the Binghamton Athletic Department, click here.