Big Winter Pushes Statesmen to 56th in Directors’ Cup

Oskaloosa–The William Penn athletics department tallied points in four different winter sports, moving just outside the top 50 as NACDA released its Final Winter LEARFIELD Directors’ Cup standings.

WPU improved 20 slots from the fall to 56th with 222.2 points; over 250 institutions compete in the NAIA. After scoring 64 points from men’s soccer (ninth place) in the fall, the navy and gold collected 158.2 points during the winter.

Leading the way for William Penn during the winter was a fourth-place effort from the women’s wrestling team that garnered 80 points. The women’s bowling team secured 42.5 points for its sixth-place finish, while the men’s wrestling team’s 43rd-place finish earned 28.5 points for the Statesmen. An additional 7.2 points were collected by WPU for placing 63rd in indoor men’s track and field.

Cumberlands (Ky.) currently has a commanding lead in the NAIA with 950 points (621 during the winter), while Indiana Wesleyan is second with 759.5 points. Milligan (Tenn.), with 679 points, St. Thomas (Fla.), with 581.5 points, and Indiana Tech, with 550.25 points, round out the top five.

William Penn is currently sixth within the Heart of America Athletic Conference, while Grand View is atop the league list with 452.5 points (13th).

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 NAIA National Championships in up to 13 sports, four of which must be men’s basketball, men’s soccer, women’s basketball, and women’s volleyball. The next nine sports for each institution, regardless of gender, will be used in the standings.