Westminster College finished first among conference schools in the winter period of the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) Canned Food Drive. Westminster collected nearly 1,000 cans during the basketball season, marking just the second time in three years of the competition's existence the Blue Jays have won a collection period.

MacMurray College finished second in the race, collecting 322 items while Iowa Wesleyan University was third with 318 items. Webster University brought in 176 items while Eureka College added 27 items to the collection.

For year long totals, Westminster and MacMurray have each topped the 1,000 can mark with the Blue Jays holding a 1,508 to 1,134 edge over the Highlanders. The SLIAC as a whole has collected over 3,000 canned food items this year with the spring period still to come.

The canned food drive competition is part of the SLIAC's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee Community Service Award. The SAAC Community Service Award was first awarded in 2014 and is presented to the school who collects the most canned food items during the school year. The goal is to give back to the community and further develop citizenship among its student-athletes.

Each institution and their SAAC committee will hold canned food drives throughout the year, with the collected donations going to a local food pantry. Collection periods end during the last weekend of the regular season for the respective sports. Cash donations are also accepted with every dollar donated counting as two canned food items. The competition is divided into three collection periods; the fall season, the winter season, and the spring season.

Courtesy of SLIAC SID