Dec. 21, 2017 2017-18 Division II Directors' Cup Standings
BELLINGHAM, Wash. - Led by strong performances by the volleyball and women's soccer teams, Western Washington University stands in 31st place in the 2017-18 Learfield Sports Directors' Cup NCAA Division II standings following the fall championships season.
Both the volleyball and women's soccer program played in the NCAA II West Regional Championship, gathering 64 points apiece.
WWU finished 11th in the 2016-17 Directors' Cup standings, marking the eighth top 20 finish in the last 10 years. The Vikings have a string of 14 consecutive seasons finishing in the top 50.
The volleyball team finished the 2017 season ranked No. 7 in the nation, falling one win short of a trip to the NCAA II Elite 8. Advancing to the NCAA Championships for the sixth consecutive season, WWU was 27-4 overall and won the Great Northwest Athletic Conference championship with a 19-1 league record.
The women's soccer team advanced to the NCAA II West Regional Final for the third consecutive season and fifth time in the last six years. Taking the field as the defending national champions, the Vikings posted an 18-2 record to finish the season ranked No. 8 in the nation and claimed their third consecutive GNAC Championships title. WWU opened the season with a perfect 15-0 record to extend its winning streak to 39 consecutive games, the fourth-longest winning streak in NCAA Division II history.
Colorado School of Mines leads the Division II Directors' Cup standings after the fall season with 329.00 points, followed by California Baptist (299.00), Shippensburg (262.50), LIU Post (252.00) and West Chester (247.00). WWU (31st, 128.00) is listed 2nd among GNAC schools right behind Alaska Anchorage (30th, 131.00). Seven of the 11 conference members are listed in the top 100, with Simon Fraser (35th, 123.50), Central Washington (64th, 78.00), Western Oregon (92nd, 53.00), Concordia (97th, 50.00) and Northwest Nazarene (97th, 50.00) all cracking the top 100.
The latest rankings were released Thursday by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics, marking the one-third point in the 2017-18 campaign. The annual all-sport competition, which determines the national success of the over 300 NCAA Division II programs, is updated after the winter sports season and finalized following the spring championships in June.
While having success in competition, WWU student-athletes continue to be outstanding in the classroom. The Vikings were one of 32 NCAA Division II schools to earn the Presidents' Award for Academic Excellence in 2016-17, awarded to schools having an Academic Success Rate of 90 percent or higher in the latest NCAA Graduation Rate report. Western student-athletes entering college from 2007 to 2010 had an ASR of 90 percent, the school's best mark in the 12 years of reporting ASR data.
About WWU Athletics:
Western Washington University is a four-year public institution located in Bellingham, Washington, featuring over 300 student-athletes that compete for 15 intercollegiate athletic teams. WWU is in its 20th year as a NCAA Division II member in 2017-18 and competes primarily in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference. WWU Athletics has finished in the top 50 in the NCAA II Learfield Directors' Cup standings in each of the last 14 years, and in the top 20 in eight of the last 10 years. WWU's programs have won 11 team national championships, most recently the 2016 women's soccer team and the 2017 women's rowing team. Outside of competition, WWU's student-athletes have compiled an academic success rate of 90%, well above the NCAA II national number of 72 percent. WWU was one of 32 NCAA Division II schools to earn the Presidents' Award for Academic Excellence for 2016-17, awarded to schools having an Academic Success Rate of 90 percent or higher in the latest NCAA Graduation Rate. During the 2016-17 sports season, 13 of 15 teams advanced to their respective NCAA championships, 41 athletes earned all-region honors and 13 were named All-Americans.
