CLEVELAND – The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Conference (GLIAC) placed two member institutions in the top three and five in the top 40 of the 2012-13 Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup standings. Grand Valley State University finished second with a score of 939.25 and Ashland University finished third with a score of 912.50, both being edged out by the number one institution for the second year in a row Grand Canyon (Ariz.) with a score of 945.75.
Click here for the complete Division II Learfield Sports Directors' Cup Standings release
Grand Valley State finished in second, after scoring in 13 sports. The Lakers won the women’s cross country national championship; finished third in women’s soccer, baseball, softball, and women’s outdoor track & field; fourth in women’s and men’s indoor track & field; seventh in men’s cross country; 11th in men’s swimming; 13th in women’s golf; 14th in women’s swimming, 23rd in men’s golf and 27th in men’s outdoor track and field. Grand Valley State points also had two scores omitted in women’s tennis and women’s volleyball as they reached the seven maximum sports allowed for women’s sports.
“All of us at GVSU are very proud once again of our coaches and student-athletes on another high finish in the Directors’ Cup standings, the twelfth year in a row that the Lakers have finished first or second in the cup,” stated GVSU President Thomas J. Haas. “We are especially proud that two GLIAC schools, GVSU and Ashland, finished second and third respectively in the standings and offer our congratulations to the Ashland Eagles on their great season!”
Ashland finished in third with 912.50 points. The Eagles scored in 14 sports and claimed the women’s basketball national championship; placed second in men’s indoor and outdoor track and field; fifth in women’s track and field; ninth in football, men’s cross country, and women’s track and field; 12th in women’s golf and women’s swimming; 15th in men’s wrestling; 17th in women’s volleyball and baseball; and 22nd in men’s swimming.
“I am extremely proud of the Ashland University athletes who have distinguished themselves on the field, court, mats and pool to finish 3rd back to back years in the Division II Learfield Directors’ Cup,” stated Ashland University President Fredrick J. Finks. “This brings outing recognition not only to our sport teams but to the University at large.”
The GLIAC placed another five institutions in the top 40. The institutions placing in the top 40 are the University of Findlay (26th), Ferris State University (32nd), Wayne State University (39th), Saginaw Valley State University (62nd), and Lake Erie University (95th). The GLIAC also placed another six institutions in the top 200. Those institutions being, Tiffin University (116th), Northwood University (129th), Hillsdale University (132nd), Lake Superior State Univeristy (151st), Northern Michigan University (155th), and Michigan Tech University (177th). Rounding out the GLIAC institutions was Ohio Dominican University (226th).
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 14 sports – seven women’s and seven men’s. Complete standings and the scoring structure can be found on NACDA’s website at www.directorscup.org. In addition, please visit www.thedirectorscup.com, like us on Facebook at facebook.com/lsdirectorscup or follow us on Twitter @lsdirectorscup.
About Learfield Sports: A preeminent leader in the collegiate sports marketplace for 40 years, the company has titled the acclaimed Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup for five consecutive years. Learfield Sports manages the multimedia rights for more than 50 collegiate institutions, conferences and associations, and is deeply integrated in collegiate ticket sales. The company’s multimedia rights encompass numerous content distribution platforms to deliver the passion of college athletics across radio, television and digital networks to fans globally. Today, Learfield Sports’ exclusive sports programming reaches more than 50 million television households nationally and delivers nearly 17,000 hours of radio programming on more than 1,000 radio stations. To learn more about its history and collegiate portfolio, visit www.learfieldsports.com.