Salisbury ranked 11th in Directors' Cup fall standings
CLEVELAND - A strong fall athletic season by Salisbury University pushed the Sea Gulls to 11th place in the Division III Fall U.S. Sports Academy Directors' Cup standings presented by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA).
Salisbury accumulated 208 points as the Sea Gulls earned points in five of the seven fall NCAA championships. The SU field hockey team, a national semifinalist, placed third overall and earned 83 points. The Sea Gull men's soccer (50 points) and football (25 points) teams were 17th in their respective sports' standings. Women's soccer and volleyball recorded 25 points each for their 33rd place finish. SU did not record any points for men's and women's cross country.
The Sea Gulls were edged out by Wisconsin-Whitewater (215 points) for 10th place by seven points. SU is currently the highest ranked Maryland school and the top ranked Capital Athletic Conference program. York (Pa.) College checks in at No. 24 with 127 points thanks to its men's and women's soccer programs.
Last season, Salisbury finished 36th overall with 384.5 points. The highest Salisbury has placed in the final Directors' Cup standings since 1995-96 is 11th in 2004-05.
Washington (Mo.) is currently ranked No. 1 with 322 points as the Bears completed four top-10 finishes, highlighted by a volleyball national championship. Amherst (291 points), Williams (286), Calvin, Mich. (285) and The College of New Jersey (254) round out the top-five.
The first Division III Winter U.S. Sports Academy Directors' Cup standings will be released on March 20, 2008, and will feature men's and women's indoor track, women's swimming and wrestling.
The U.S. Sports Academy Directors' Cup was developed as a joint effort between NACDA and USA Today to recognize the top athletic programs in Division I, II, III and NAIA. The United States Sports Academy, based in Daphne, Ala., is the program sponsor. Points are awarded based on each institution's finish in up to 18 sports -- nine women's and nine men's. For more information please visit http://www.nacda.com/.
