St. Thomas 10th nationally in 2009-2010 Directors Cup

June 23, 2010

St. Thomas finished 10th out of 424 institutions in the 2009-2010 NACDA Division III Directors' Cup all-sport standings. It's the Tommies' best showing since a fourth-place finish in 2000. UST was just nine points out of seventh place.

The Tommies' 670.25 points were their second-most ever. UST has placed in the top 40 in Division III all 15 years of the competition, including 11 top-25 finishes.

The final scoring was announced Wednesday by the National Association of Collegiate Athletics Directors (NACDA). The prestigious competition is sponsored by NACDA, the United States Sports Academy, and USA TODAY, and seeks to recognize the top overall collegiate athletics programs in the country.

Williams (Mass.) took first for the 14th time in 15 seasons with 1,292 points.

Three other MIAC institutions finished in the top 75 -- Gustavus placed 20th (570), Carleton took 50th (304), and St. Olaf was 70th (238.5).

In Division II, top 30 placers included Minnesota State Mankato, which took fourth; St. Cloud State, which placed fifth; and Minnesota-Duluth, which placed 26th. In Division I, the Minnesota Gophers are in 21st place, with baseball points still to come.

Impressive balance

UST had no top-four national team finishes but had nine top-25 placings and scored in 13 of 20 sports (the best finish of indoor and outdoor track is used).

Tommie women's teams tied for ninth in both volleyball and softball; took 13th in outdoor track; tied for 33rd in both basketball and soccer; and 33 in swimming.

St. Thomas men's points came with a tie for fifth in football; a tie for ninth in hockey; 11th in swimming; a tie for 17th in baseball; 19th in cross country; 23rd in indoor track; and a tie for 33rd in men's basketball.

Click here to access final 2009-2010 Division III scoring:

http://www.nacda.com/auto_pdf/p_hotos/s_chools/nacda/sports/directorscup/auto_pdf/d3dcupjune23

Division III Top 10 Placers
1. Williams (Mass) 1292.25
2. Amherst (Mass.) 815
3. Washington (Mo.) 899
4. Middlebury (Vt.) 813.50
5. Illinois Wesleyan 704.5
6. Tufts (Mass.) 699

7. UW-LaCrosse 678.75
8. College of New Jersey 677.5
9. Salisbury (Md.) 673.25
10.St. Thomas 670.25

MIAC Scorers
10. St. Thomas 670.25
20. Gustavus 570
50. Carleton 304
70. St. Olaf 238.5
87. Bethel 210.50
98. Concordia-M'head 189

117. St. John's 165
176. Hamline 100.5
177. Macalester

177. Augsburg 100

205. St. Mary's 83

244. St. Benedict 25

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St. Thomas' All-Time Directors' Cup Scoring
Year/Place/Points
(Note: Scoring format has changed over the years)

1996/14th of 402/388.5 points
1997/18th of 402/340.5
1998/t-25th of 402/200
1999/16th of 387/240
2000/4th of 393/586
2001/25th of 395/353.5
2002/13th of 400/446.5
2003/35th of 424/301
2004/40th of 424/296
2005/24th of 424/356
2006/28th of 424/398
2007/28th of 424/431.25
2008/12th of 424/592.75

2009/13th of 424/702

2010/10th of 424/670.25