UW-Stevens Point in Third Place in Sears Director�s Cup Standings

      After one of the most successful winter sports seasons in school history, the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point sits in third place in the latest Sears Director�s Cup Standings, which measure the top overall athletics program in the NCAA Division III.

     The Pointers achieved a national championship in women�s basketball, as well as top 20 finishes in women�s swimming and diving, wrestling and men�s indoor track and field. The men�s swimming and diving and women�s indoor track and field teams both placed in the top 30 nationally.

     Points are awarded based on finishes in NCAA tournament competition, so UW-Stevens Point did not earn any points in men�s basketball or women�s hockey, despite conference championships in both sports.

     UW-Stevens Point has already accumulated a school-record 577 points in the seven-year history of the award and ranks just 11 points behind second place College of New Jersey. Three-time defending champion Williams (Mass.) leads the standings with 622.5 points. The Pointers achieved their highest finish in school history during the 2000-01 season with a sixth place finish and 538 points.

     The Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference has three of the top six schools as UW-Oshkosh ranks fifth with 552 points and UW-La Crosse is sixth with 512 points. Ithaca (N.Y.) is fourth with 562 points.

Current 2001-02 Sears Director's Cup Standings � March 28, 2002
Place, School - Points
1. Williams (Mass.) - 622.5
2. College of New Jersey - 588
3. UW-Stevens Point - 577
4. Ithaca (N.Y.) - 562
5. UW-Oshkosh - 552
6. UW-La Crosse - 512
7. Middlebury (Vt.) - 418.5
8. Amherst (Mass.) - 418
9. Cortland State (N.Y.) - 364
10. Wartburg (Iowa) - 355