Virginia Athletic Program Finishes Eighth in Sears Directors' Cup Rankings

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June 15, 1999

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The University of Virginia intercollegiateathletic program ranked eighth in the final 1998-99 Division I SearsDirectors’ Cup standings. It is the highest ranking for the Virginiaprogram in the six-year history of the Sears Directors’ Cup standings. UVafinished eighth among NCAA Division I schools based on the combinedperformances of men’s and women’s sports during the 1998-99 academic yearwith a total of 490 points.

Stanford University finished first in the NCAA Division I standingsfor the fifth consecutive year, winning the Sears Directors’ Cup with atotal of 910 points. Stanford’s point total will increase even higherafter the Cardinal complete competition in the College World Series thisweek. Stanford was followed by the University of Georgia (720 points) andPenn State University (600 points). Virginia was one of two Atlantic CoastConference schools to finish in the Sears Directors’ Cup Top 10. DukeUniversity finished tied for sixth with the University of Michigan with 510points, respectively.

Intercollegiate athletic highlights for UVA during the 1998-99academic year include the football team making its ninth bowl appearance in12 years in 1998. Virginia played Georgia in the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl.In addition, teams or individuals from 16 sports represented UVa in NCAApostseason play last season, including: men’s and women’s cross country,field hockey, volleyball, and men’s and women’s soccer in the fall; women’sbasketball, men’s and women’s swimming, and wrestling in the winter; andmen’s and women’s lacrosse, women’s rowing, men’s tennis and men’s andwomen’s outdoor track in the spring. The men’s lacrosse team captured the1999 NCAA Championship, while the women’s rowing team placed second overallat the 1999 NCAA Women’s Rowing Championships. The women’s lacrosse teamwas the NCAA runner-up and the field hockey team advanced to the NCAA FinalFour.

There are four Sears Directors’ Cup Awards, one to honor theinstitution with the best all-around athletic programs in each of theNCAA’s Divisions I, II, and III, and the NAIA. Adams State College (Col.)finished first in Division II, Williams College (Mass.) placed first inDivision III and Simon Fraser University (BC Canada) finished first in theNAIA standings.

Of the 310 eligible universities and colleges in Division I, 252institutions (81 percent) recorded points in the Sears Directors’ Cupcompetition. The Sears Directors’ Cup program is administered by theNational Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) andsponsored by Sears, Roebuck and Company.

Virginia finished 13th in the 1998 Sears Directors’ Cup standings.UVA was 22nd in 1997, 21st in 1996, tied for 19th in 1995 and 19th in 1994.

1998-99 Sears Directors Cup Top 10 Finishers

 1.  Stanford University                *910 points 2.  University of Georgia               720 points 3.  Penn State University               600 points 4.  University of Florida               580 points 5.  UCLA                                570 points 6.  Duke University                     510 points 6.  University of Michigan              510 points 8.  University of Virginia              490 points 9.  University of Arizona               470 points10.  University of Southern California   460 points

* Stanford’s points from the College World Series to be added. All otherpoint totals are final.