WVU 6th in Directors' Cup
April 10, 2008 05:02 PM | General
April 10, 2008
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – What do Stanford, Texas, California, Penn State, Ohio State and West Virginia all have in common? Those are the top six athletic departments in the country, according to the latest U.S. Sports Academy Directors’ Cup standings released earlier today.
West Virginia jumped up one spot from seventh to sixth in the latest standings following the performances put forth by men’s and women’s basketball. Coach Bob Huggins’ Mountaineers advanced to the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 and finished the season ranked No. 17 in the final ESPN/USA Today Coaches’ Poll released on Tuesday.
The WVU women advanced to the NCAA Tournament second round for the second straight season under veteran coach Mike Carey and finished the year ranked No. 20. It was the first time in school history the WVU women went wire to wire in the national polls.
During the first winter rankings West Virginia earned points from rifle’s sixth-place finish at nationals, a 29th-place finish from women’s track at indoor nationals, a 31st-place finish from wrestling at NCAAs, and 33rd-place showing by men’s swimming at NCAAs.
Last fall West Virginia was seventh in the standings following outstanding performances from football, men’s and women’s soccer and women’s cross country. The football team defeated Oklahoma, 48-28, in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl and finished the season ranked sixth in both polls.
Women’s soccer advanced to the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight for the first time in school history and made its eighth straight NCAA appearance under veteran coach Nikki Izzo-Brown.
Men’s soccer reached the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 under second-year coach Marlon LeBlanc, and a sophomore-dominated women’s cross country team placed ninth at nationals.
"We had outstanding success with our seventh-place finish after the fall season," Director of Athletics Ed Pastilong said. "Now we have followed that up with a strong performance in our winter sports. We are very proud of our accomplishments on the field and in the classroom, and it's a tribute to our coaches, staff and student-athletes to be ranked sixth at this point."
West Virginia, with 578 overall points, will receive more points once the women’s gymnastics season is complete. Coach Linda Burdette’s team recently qualified for NCAA Regionals for the 29th time in the last 30 years and will compete this weekend in Gainesville, Fla.
The next closest Big East school to West Virginia in the Directors’ Cup standings is 18th-place Notre Dame with 454.500 points.
This year's performance is well ahead of the pace set by West Virginia’s best-ever finish of 41st place in the 1998 Directors' Cup standings. Last year, the Mountaineers finished 57th and they were 52nd in 2006.
Since its inception in 1994, West Virginia has finished among the Top 100 athletic departments each year.
The final Directors’ Cup standings will be announced on June 26.
West Virginia's Previous Directors’ Cup Finishes
2007, 57th
2006, 52nd
2005, 59th
2004, 71st
2003, 84th
2002, 76th
2001, 70th
2000, 77th
1999, 60th
1998, 41st
1997, 72nd
1996, 63rd
1995, 92nd
1994, 67th
