CLEVELAND, Ohio - Flagler College finished in 33^rd place in the final Learfield Sports Directors' Cup standings for NCAA Division II members, which were released Tuesday afternoon. The ranking is the highest mark Flagler has achieved since moving to NCAA Division II and was the best mark since 2004-05 when it finished in 22^nd place.

"It is gratifying to see us progress in this most important national measurement," said Flagler's Director of Athletics Jud Damon. "It's a great reflection on the entire institution because it takes everyone to help make an athletics program function at the highest level."  

The Learfield Sports Directors' Cup was developed as a joint effort between the National Association of Collegiate Director of Athletics (NACDA) and USA Today. Points are awarded based on each institution's finish in NCAA Championships.
 
Flagler tallied a total of 461 points, 283 from spring sports postseason appearances and the other 178 from the fall. The women's tennis and women's golf teams each earned 83 points after reaching the national semifinals. The men's tennis and women's lacrosse teams added another 50 and 25 points, respectively. Men's tennis played in the preliminary round of the NCAA Tournament while the women's lacrosse team played in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Softball contributed 37.5 points and men's golf tallied five points for advancing to the regionals. In the fall, volleyball earned 50 points while women's cross country added 49 points and the men's team had 29 points. The men's and women's soccer teams each tallied 25 points.

"We are extremely proud of our student-athletes and athletics staff," said Damon. "We are deeply grateful for the leadership and support from President (John) Delaney, our Board of Trustees, our supporters, and our superb colleagues all across campus."

The University of North Georgia led the Peach Belt Conference members with 524.5 points and finished in 22^nd place. Columbus State University (363) followed Flagler and finished in 52^nd place. The remainder of the conference was Lander University (317.5), Augusta University (204), USC Aiken (121.5), Clayton State University (73), Georgia Southwestern State University (60), and Georgia College & State University (25).
 
Grand Valley State University won its 17^th consecutive title with 1,080.5 points. Wingate University finished in second place with 837.25 points.

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