Who Will Rise Above the Rest and Climb the Werner Ladder at this Year's Championship Games? Werner Ladder Co., the Official Ladder of the NCAA(R) Basketball Championships, Teams Up Again with the NCAA(R) and CBS Sports to Find Out

GREENVILLE, Pa., April 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Werner Ladder announced today that it is continuing its partnerships with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and CBS Sports to be the "Official Ladder of the NCAA® Basketball Championships." Werner is also the official ladder, and corporate partner, of the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) and the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA).

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The ladders are made exclusively for the NCAA® and are used by the winning teams during the post game net-cutting ceremonies. A specially sized 9 ft. fiberglass stepladder, it provides easy access to the net for the winning players and coaches. The HolsterTop™ features a built-in magnetic strip to safely secure the scissors used to cut down the nets in all NCAA opening round games, the NCAA® Men's Final Four® in Indianapolis and the NCAA® Women's Final Four in San Antonio., as well as the Division II & III Championship games.

For the 29th consecutive year, games will be aired exclusively on CBS Sports and will be available on NCAA® March Madness® on Demand at CBSsports.com and NCAA.com.

"As we begin the Final Four weekends in Indianapolis and San Antonio, Werner is really looking forward to seeing who will rise to the top and climb this year's Werner ladders at the end of the championship games. Our ladders continue to be an integral part of the climb to the top for these outstanding student-athletes, and we are proud to once again bring the net-cutting ceremonies closer to the winning student-athletes and the coaches," said Chris Filardi, Vice President, Senior Vice President of Marketing.

The winning institution keeps one ladder for permanent display on campus. The other ladder will be auctioned off with the proceeds going to a charity of the winning coach's choice at the start of next season, when the ladders are officially presented to the schools.

In support of the partnership, Werner Ladder donates $1,000 to the general scholarship fund of every school in this year's Men's and Women's Final Four - encouraging all students who set their sights on winning in the classroom and in competition. "Werner is honored to have this opportunity to support student-athletes, and be a part of the great NCAA tradition," concludes Filardi.

A full selection of Werner ladders for both consumers and professionals are available at Lowe's, an Official Corporate Partner of the NCAA®, and at www.Lowes.com, as well as most professional, hardware and paint retailers nationwide.

ABOUT WERNER LADDER COMPANY: Werner Co. is the world's leading manufacturer and distributor of ladders, climbing equipment and ladder accessories for Werner, Green Bull, Keller, and other licensed brands. Backed by over 50 years of product innovation, Werner leads the industry with its commitment to the design and manufacture of quality products that meet or exceed applicable Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and American National Standards Institute (ANSI) codes and standards for strength and structural integrity. Werner is headquartered in Greenville, Pennsylvania. For more information about Werner Co., please visit www.wernerladder.com.

About the NCAA The NCAA is a membership-led nonprofit association of colleges and universities committed to supporting academic and athletic opportunities for more than 400,000 student-athletes at more than 1,000 member colleges and universities. Each year, more than 54,000 student-athletes compete in NCAA championships in Divisions I, II and III sports. Visit www.ncaa.org and www.ncaa.com for more details about the Association, its goals and members and corporate partnerships that help support programs for student-athletes. The NCAA is proud to have the following elite companies as official Corporate Champions -- AT&T, Capital One and Coca-Cola -- and the following elite companies as official Corporate Partners -- Enterprise, The Hartford, Hershey's, LG, Lowe's, Planters, State Farm and UPS.

[NCAA, Final Four, and March Madness are trademarks owned or licensed by the National Collegiate Athletic Association.]

Further information is available at www.wernerladder.com.  

SOURCE Werner Ladder