Wheaton ranks among top 10 athletic programs in Sears Cup standings

The Wheaton College athletic programs are ranked eighth through the first set of winter standings for the sixth annual Sears Directors' Cup, presented annually by Sears Roebuck and Co. and the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) to the top NCAA collegiate programs in Division I, II and III and the NAIA. Wheaton's 331 points places the school in the top 10 for the first time in school history.

Offered by the nation's athletic directors, the standings are based on the completion of men's and women's cross country, field hockey, football, men's and women's soccer, women's volleyball, skiing, women's swimming, men's and women's indoor track and field and wrestling. Points are awarded based on each institution's finish in up to 18 sports, including nine for men and nine for women. Each national champion receives 100 points.

The athletic department surged to the front of the pack behind the strength of Wheaton's third consecutive national championship in women's indoor track and field and fifth place finish in men's indoor track and field. In the fall season, both the women's (20-3) and men's soccer teams (17-3-1) contributed to the college's strong showing in the Cup standings, as the team's placed in the top 16 and 32, respectively.

Each year the Sears Directors' Cup program, presented in partnership by Sears, NACDA and USA Today, awards Waterford Crystal trophies to the top athletics programs and presents a total of $100,000 in postgraduate academic scholarships to students in all four categories.

Developed as a joint effort between USA Today and NACDA, the Sears Directors' Cup program is the only national awards and academic scholarship program to recognize all NCAA and NAIA championship sports for both men's and women's athletics.

For more information on the Sears Directors' Cup program, please visit http://nacda.com.