Wheaton Maintains Top 20 Ranking in NCAA Division III United States Sports Academy Directors' Cup Standings
CLEVELAND, OH – Wheaton College maintained its Top 20 ranking in the NCAA Division III United States Sports Academy Directors’ Cup through the first set of winter standings, as the Lyons are currently ranked 19th overall and fifth in New England.
CLEVELAND, OH - Wheaton College maintained its Top 20 ranking in the NCAA Division III United States Sports Academy Directors' Cup through the first set of winter standings, as the Lyons are currently ranked 19th overall and fifth in New England. Marking the eighth year of the program, the standings are presented by the nation's athletics directors.
Wheaton has recorded an impressive 315.75 points, bettering New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) member Springfield College by 2.25 points. The Lyons trail Gustavus Adolphus College (MN) by 13 points for 18th place. Williams, which has led in the standings since May of 2002 and has won seven of the eight championships, opens the winter season with 821.25 points and a 91.25 point lead. The University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point is second with 730 points, followed by the College of New Jersey with 623.75 points, the University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse with 621 points and Amherst College with 486.5 points.
The United States Sports Academy Directors' Cup was developed as a joint effort between the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and USA Today. NACDA administers the program and the United States Sports Academy, based in Daphne, Alabama, is in its first year of sponsoring the program. The winter standings are based on the completion of men's and women's basketball, skiing, men's and women's swimming, men's and women's indoor track and field and men's wrestling.
The Lyons earned their winter points courtesy of the men's and women's indoor track and field programs. Head coach Paul Souza and the five-time national champion women's team placed second in the field and in the process collected 90 points for Wheaton. The Lyons picked up 28 points at the meet, only short of national champion University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. Wheaton also had an individual national champion in the 400-meter event.
On the men's side, Souza and the Lyons sent a program-best six competitors to the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where Wheaton finished in a tie for eighth overall. Bettering last year's standing by two places, the Lyons totaled 16 points and were just 1.5 points short of sharing seventh place. Wheaton boasted a national champion in the high jump event.
Points are awarded based on each institution's finish in up to 18 sports - nine for the men and nine for the women. Each national champion receives 100 points. Winter standings that are published mid-year are unofficial standings. Official standings will be published upon the completion of the spring season. Complete standings and the scoring structure can be found on NACDA's web site at www.nacda.com.
