Salisbury returns to the Top 25 in final Directors' Cup standings

DALLAS - For the eighth time in school history the Salisbury University athletics program was ranked in the top 25 of the final U.S. Sports Academy Division III Directors' Cup standings for the 2007-08 season presented by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics. The Sea Gulls finished 23rd overall in the country with 487 points. Salisbury is the top-ranked school from the Capital Athletic Conference and the second highest in the state of Maryland. SU has been ranked in the top 25 in five of the past six seasons.

The Directors' Cup is presented annually to the nation's best overall collegiate athletics program in the country. Schools acquire points based on their success in NCAA tournament play for all sports.

Salisbury was ranked 11th overall after the fall season as the Sea Gulls secured 208 points thanks to a final four appearance by the field hockey program, a second round advancement by the men's soccer team and NCAA tournament appearances by football, volleyball and women's soccer.

SU earned 32 points in the winter due to Delannie Spriggs and his performance in the men's track and field indoor championships where he earned All-American honors in the 55-meter dash.

Salisbury entered the spring season in 39th place overall (240 points) but moved up 16 spots over the course of May to its final spot at 23rd. The Sea Gulls earned 247 points in the spring because of the men's lacrosse national championship, a final four appearance by the women's lacrosse program, and a regional final berth by the baseball team.

This year's finish for SU is the sixth best in school history in the 13-year history of the Directors' Cup.

Williams (Mass.) College won its 10th consecutive Directors' Cup title with 1,120 points as the Ephs scored points in the maximum of nine men's and nine women's sports. Williams fields 33 varsity sports. The Ephs were followed by Washington (Mo.) University in second place with 899 points and The College of New Jersey was third with 825.25 points. Amherst (Mass.) College repeated with a fourth-place finish with 815 points and Middlebury (Vt.) College rounds out the top five spots with 813.50 points. Williams, Amherst and Middlebury all hail from the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC).

There were 307 Division III institutions that earned Directors' Cup points out of nearly 450 schools in the country.

Johns Hopkins University was the lone Maryland school ahead of Salisbury as the Blue Jays were 16th with 577.50 points. In addition to Salisbury, five CAC schools were also ranked in the final standings including University of Mary Washington (77th), York (Pa.) College (115th), Wesley College (139th), St. Mary's (Md.) College (157th) and Marymount (Va.) University (268th).

Each year, the Directors' Cup program, sponsored by NACDA and the United States Sports Academy, awards trophies to the top athletics programs in NCAA Division I, II, III and NAIA. The Directors' Cup program is the only all‑sports competition that recognizes the institution in each of the four categories with the best overall athletics program. Complete final rankings on all of the institutions are available on NACDA's home page at www.nacda.com

Previous Salisbury University Directors' Cup Ranks
Year:      Final Place
1995-96: 51st
1996-97: 25th
1997-98: 45th
1998-99: 34th
1999-00: 18th
2000-01: 15th
2001-02: 54th
2002-03: 18th
2003-04: 12th
2004-05: 11th
2005-06: 24th
2006-07: 36th
2007-08: 23rd