Princeton University Athletics
Princeton Finishes 24th In Sears Cup
June 26, 2001 | General
June 26, 2001
Princeton's 2000-01 athletic season added a final honor this week when the Tigers placed 24th in the final Sears Directors' Cup standings. It was the second Top 25 finish for Princeton, who also did so in 1998.
Princeton is the only non-scholarship school to finish in the Top 25 in the eight years the Cup has been awarded. Princeton has also been the highest ranking non-scholarship school in seven of the eight years.
The Sears Cup is organized by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) to recognize the top programs in NCAA Division I, II and III and NAIA. Points are awarded based on placing in postseason championship events. Stanford was the Division I winner for the seventh consecutive season.
"This is indeed a University achievement," director of athletics Gary Walters said. "Our athletic success reflects the overall quality of our student-athletes and the strength of campus life at Princeton. Our ability to compete at such a high level also is a testament to our tremendous coaches."
Princeton moved into the Top 25 with a strong spring performance that saw the men's lacrosse team win the NCAA championship, the women's lacrosse team advance to the Final Four, the baseball team win a game in the NCAA tournament and the women's open crew advance to the Grand Final at the NCAA championships. Princeton also earned spring points in men's and women's golf and men's track and field.
Princeton teams won 14 Ivy League championships in 2000-01, tying the all-time Ivy record set by Princeton a year earlier.
Of the 23 teams that finished ahead of Princeton, 21 were from either the Pac 10, Big 10, SEC, Big 12 or ACC. Princeton finished ahead of every school in the Big East, nine of the schools in the Big 12, eight in the SEC and seven in the ACC.
Princeton led the Ivy League. Harvard was next at 43, followed by Brown (62), Dartmouth (65), Yale (86), Penn (89), Columbia (112) and Cornell (122).
Through the Sears Directors' Cup program, Sears and NACDA annually award $100,000 in postgraduate academic scholarships. Five $5,000 scholarships in each division assist students who support their institution's athletics departments, including team managers, athletics trainers, band members, cheerleaders, assistant coaches, sports information assistants, facility staff and academic support personnel. For each category, four recipients are selected by a nationwide nomination process, administered by NACDA, while the fifth recipient is a student at the institution that wins the Sears Directors' Cup.
Of the 318 eligible colleges and universities in the NCAA Division I, a total of 260 (82%) scored points in the Sears Directors' Cup competition. NACDA, now in its 36th year, serves as the professional and educational association for more than 6,100 collegiate athletics directors, associates, assistants and conference administrators at more than 1,600 institutions throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico.
2000-01 Sears Cup Division I Final Top 25
1. Stanford 1,349.5
2. UCLA 1,138
3. Georgia 890.5
4. Michigan 864.5
5. Arizona 863
6. Ohio State 861
7. Florida 847
8. Southern California 816.5
9. Arizona State 801
10. Penn State 774.5
11. Notre Dame 764.5
12. California 760
13. Nebraska 753
14. Washington 148
15. North Carolina 728.5
16. Duke 721
17. Brigham Young 707
18. Oklahoma 698.5
19. Wisconsin 671.5
20. Texas 671
21. Tennessee 655.5
22. Louisiana State 652.5
23. Minnesota 639.5
24. PRINCETON 569.5
25. South Carolina 539.5