Ephs 2nd in Learfield Sports Directors' Cup to Cortland State after fall season

WILLIAMSTOWN, MASS. – Williams College home to 12 of the 13 Directors' Cups awarded in NCAA Division III history, including the last 10 in a row, is in second place in the Learfield Sports Directors' Cup competition at the end of the fall championship season.

The Red Dragons of Cortland State currently sit atop the rankings with 353 points. Cortland's 353 points were generated from five teams. Cortland State won the men's cross country title, finished fifth in both field hockey and football, seventh in women's cross country and 17th in men's soccer.

The Ephs' 326 points came from four teams finishing in the top five at NCAA championships. Both the men's and women's cross country teams from Williams finished third, as did the women's soccer team and the Eph women's volleyball team captured fifth place.

The Eph men's cross country team featured All-Americans Edgar Kosgey and Jeff Perlis and Lauren Philbrook collected women's All-American honors, while forward Gabby Woodson repeated as an All-American and goalie Lauren Sinnenberg recorded her first All-American honor in soccer.

The Williams men's and women's cross country teams exceeded expectations at the NCAA meet with their top three finishes and women's soccer recorded a school record 19 wins on the year en route to becoming the first NESCAC team to win back-to-back conference titles. Volleyball closed out the season with 12 wins in the final 13 matches to claim the NESCAC and NCAA New England Regional title. William men's cross country won the NESCAC title for the third year in a row and claimed the New England Regional title as well and the women advanced to their 15th consecutive appearance at the NCAA championship race with strong finishes at the NESCAC and New England Regional.

The Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup was developed as a joint effort between the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and USA Today.  Points are awarded based on each institution's finish in up to 18 sports -- nine women’s and nine men’s. Previous sponsors of the Cup included Sears, NACDA and the U.S. Sports Academy. This is Learfield Sports' first year sponsoring the Cup.
 
Learfield Sports, a leader in the collegiate sports marketplace for almost four decades, manages the multimedia and sponsorship rights for nearly 50 collegiate institutions including Oklahoma, Penn State, North Carolina, Iowa, Missouri, Wisconsin, Alabama, Purdue, Indiana, Miami (Fla.) and Stanford. The Dallas-based company also manages corporate partner programs for the Big Ten Conference and the Western Athletic Conference and secures marketing partnerships for the Black Coaches & Administrators (BCA).  Learfield Sports (learfieldsports.com) is an operating unit of Jefferson City, Mo.-based Learfield Communications, Inc.

Learfield Sports Directors Cup
Top 10 NCAA Division III Teams

1. -- Cortland State – 353
2. -- Williams  -- 326
3. -- Messiah – 294
4. -- Emory – 278
5. -- Calvin – 265
6. -- Middlebury – 243
7. -- Wheaton (IL) – 222
8. -- Ohio Northern – 213
9. -- Johns Hopkins – 204
10. -- Amherst – 200
10. -- Hobart/Wm. Smith – 200

Complete NCAA Division III rankings