Courtesy Middlebury Athletic Communications/NACDA

Final Standings

CLEVELAND, Ohio – Middlebury has captured the 2011-12 Division III Learfield Sports Directors' Cup title, finishing the year with 1040.75 points. The Panthers scored in the maximum 18 sports, including two second place finishes in women's cross country and field hockey, a third place finish in women's lacrosse and a ninth place finish in women's tennis.

"I am proud of the effort of our student-athletes and coaches that has gone into achieving this recognition," said Middlebury College Director of Athletics Erin Quinn. "The Learfield Sports Directors' Cup represents excellence in a broad-based program, a hallmark of Middlebury College athletics which makes this recognition so meaningful."

Middlebury will be honored at the 2012 NACDA Convention during the Learfield Sports Directors' Cup luncheon sponsored by Ticketmaster, on Tuesday, June 26.

The NESCAC has four institutions in the top 10. Following first place Middlebury is Williams in third, Amherst in fourth and Tufts in seventh.

Washington (Mo.) finished in second place with 980.25 total points, its highest finish since 2007-08, when it also finished runner-up. The Bears scored in 17 sports and captured the national championship in women's cross country, finished third in men's cross country and women's indoor track & field, fourth in men's tennis, fifth in women's soccer and sixth in women's outdoor track & field.

Ending in third place is Williams with 964.50 total points. The Ephs scored in 13 sports and captured both the women's rowing and women's tennis national championships. Williams had captured 15 of 16 Learfield Sports Directors' Cup titles, including 13 straight through last year.

Amherst finished in fourth place with 950.75 total points. The Lord Jeffs scored in 16 sports with their highest finish coming in third place in men's ice hockey. This is the 13th time in 17 years that Amherst has finished in the top 10 of the standings.

Rounding out the top five is Wisconsin-Whitewater with 815.50 total points. The Warhawks scored in 14 sports and claimed both the football and men's basketball national championships. This is Wisconsin-Whitewater's first top five finish in the Learfield Sports Directors' Cup.

All 11 institutions from the NESCAC made an appearance in the final 2011-12 standings. Following Middlebury, Williams, and Amherst was Tufts in seventh, as the Jumbos scored 724.75 points. Next was Bowdoin, as the Polar Bears amassed 594.00 points, good enough for 16th. Bowdoin edged out Maine rivals Bates (343.75, 46th) and Colby (213.50, 94th). Trinity placed 48th with 326.00 points, buoyed by the Bantams' first NCAA women's lacrosse title. Wesleyan finished in 130th with 150.50 points, while Connecticut College claimed 167th with 109.00 points. Hamilton rounded out the conference contingent with 61.50 points (222nd).

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 18 sports -- nine women's and nine 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: The 2011-12 athletics season marks its fourth year as title partner of the Learfield Sports Directors' Cup. A preeminent leader in the collegiate sports marketplace for nearly four decades, Learfield Sports manages the multimedia rights for more than 50 collegiate properties, including flagship Mizzou, which it has represented since 1975. An operating unit of Learfield Communications, the company also operates regional and statewide radio networks, provides exclusive sports programming to more than 1,000 radio stations nationwide and creates nearly 7,000 radio game broadcasts and coaches' shows each year. These ever-expanding, collegiate relationships also feature comprehensive corporate sponsorship platforms, official university publications, Internet, digital media, hospitality and game-day events. To learn more about Learfield Sports' expertise, its history and complete collegiate portfolio, visit www.learfieldsports.com.