Ephs Win 12th Consecutive NACDA/Learfield Sports Directors' Cup; 14th out of 15
W-A-T-C-H the Boston Globe's Bob Ryan
salute
the Ephs on ESPN's Around the Horn 6/23
CLEVELAND, OH – And one makes a dozen. A
dozen in a row.
The National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics
(NACDA) has announced that the Williams College Ephs have won their
12th consecutive NACDA/Learfield Sports Directors’
Cup and 14th out of the 15 awarded in NCAA Division III
history.
Only the 1998 Cup eluded the Ephs as the UC San Diego Tritons won the Cup that year before moving up to NCAA Division II play.
Points in the national Directors’ Cup competition are awarded based on an institution’s finish at NCAA postseason championship team events. A maximum of 18 sports (9 men and 9 women) may be counted in compiling institution’s total points. The Ephs actually had 20 teams advance to and score points at NCAA postseason championship events this year.
Oh what a year it was for the Ephs !
During the 2009-10 academic year the Williams Ephs established a
Division III record with a grand total of 1,292.25 points, 386.5
points ahead of runner-up Amherst (905.75). The Ephs' margin of
victory was the largest in the 15 years of the NCAA Division III
Directors' Cup competition, eclipsing their previous record margin
of 379.5 back in 2002-03.
The Ephs established the previous high point total in NCAA
Division III back in 2002-03 when they racked up 1158.25
points.
The overall athletic success of the Ephs is further heightened when viewed against the backdrop of the admission standards at Williams, which are among the highest in the nation.
Williams led all NESCAC schools with 184 Academic All-NESCAC honorees on the year. Senior Corey Watts, a standout in cross country and track & field, won a prestigious Watson fellowship and classmate Blake Schultz was the winner of the national Josten’s Trophy in men’s basketball that is based on basketball ability, scholarship and community service. Further, men’s ice hockey player Zach Miller was the valedictory speaker at the College’s commencement.
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| Corey Watts '10 | Blake Schultz '10 | Zach Miller '10 | Grace Baljon '10 |
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| Ryan Malo '11 | Joey Lye '09 | Justin Moore | Alison Swain '01 |
Grace Baljon secured national recognition when she was selected the Co-Senior Player of the Year by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association. Junior Ryan Malo was named to National Wrestling Coaches Association team representing the USA in Siberia for two weeks in June. Women’s crew coach Justin Moore earned national Coach of the Year honors; women’s tennis coach Alison Swain ‘01 appeared in Sports Illustrated’s “Faces in the Crowd,” and assistant softball and women’s ice hockey coach Joey Lye ’09 was named to the Canadian National Softball Team.
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| Logan Todhunter '12 | Caroline Wilson '13 |
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| Connor Kamm '10 | Tanasia Hoffler '13 |
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2009-10 |
| Eph National Top 10
Teams ( ) = Consecutive |
Finish |
| Women's Crew (5) | 1st |
| Women's Tennis (3) | 1st |
| Men's Basketball | 2nd |
| Men's Cross Country | 2nd |
| Men's Soccer | 3rd |
| Women's Swim/Dive | 3rd |
| Women's Outdoor Track & Field | 6th |
| Women's Golf | 7th |
| Women's Cross Country | 8th |
| Women's Basketball | 9th |
| Women's Soccer | 9th |
| Men's Swim/Dive | 9th |
| Men's Tennis | 9th |
| Volleyball | 9th |
Eight NCAA individual titles were won this past year by Ephs.
Women’s swimming & diving contributed six of the
individual titles with first year Caroline Wilson and sophomore
Logan Todhunter each capturing three. Wilson took top honors in the
500 Freestyle, 1650 Freestyle and the 400 Individual Medley, while
Todhunter won the 100 and 200 Butterfly events and the 200
Individual Medley. Todhunter was named The Honda NCAA Division III
Women's Swimmer of the Year.
Senior Connor Kamm won the 5,000m run at the Outdoor Men’s
NCAA Track & Field Championships, while first year Tanasia
Hoffler took top honors in the triple jump at the Outdoor
Women’s NCAA Track & Field Championships.
In July Kamm was named the US Track & Field Cross Country
Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Men’s Outdoor Track &
Field Scholar Athlete of the Year. Joining Kamm in receiving
academic recognition from the USTFCCCA are Chris Fogler, Richard
Fusco, Josephat Koima, Isaac Nicholson, Anthony Raduazo and Corey
Watts.
Eph teams combined to win 12 of 26 NESCAC titles, 19 of 24
Little Three titles, 5 of 6 ECAC championships and two NCAA titles.
The 2009-10 academic year marked the 25th straight year that the
Ephs had won the most Little Three titles.
Winning 12 NESCAC championships this year boosted the Eph all-time
total of NESCAC titles to 151, leaving Middlebury second with 55
and Amherst third with 40. The 12 Eph NESCAC championships is one
shy of the Eph previous best of 13, which was established in
2002-03, when surprisingly there were only 23 championships to be
won that year.
Six Williams teams finished in the top five nationally with women’s crew winning its fifth consecutive NCAA title and women’s tennis extending its NCAA title streak to three. Additionally, eight Eph teams finished the year ranked 6-10 nationally to give Williams an impressive total of 14 teams finishing in the top 10.
A year ago the Ephs had to come from behind and overcome a 58.5-point Amherst lead at the end of the winter to win their 11th consecutive Cup, but this year Williams led from start to finish. The Ephs recorded a winter record point total of 529.75 points and held a 233.50-point lead over second place Amherst, 896.75 to 663.25, when the spring competitive campaigns commenced.
Punctuating the Ephs record Directors’ Cup point total
were the NCAA titles won by women’s crew and women’s
tennis in the spring. Each NCAA title is worth 100 points.
NESCAC posted yet another impressive year as the conference placed
four teams in the top six: Williams (1), Amherst (2), Middelbury
(4) and Tufts (6).
| 2009-10 NCAA Division III |
|
Top 10 |
| Place | School | Points |
| 1. | Williams | 1,292.25 |
| 2. | Amherst | 905.75 |
| 3. | Washington University
(MO) |
858.50 |
| 4. | Middlebury | 751.00 |
| 5. | Illinois-Wesleyan | 704.25 |
| 6. | Tufts | 699.00 |
| 7. |
Wisconsin-LaCrosse |
679.75 |
| 8. | College of New
Jersey |
677.75 |
| 9. | Salisbury |
673.25 |
| 10. | St. Thomas
(MN) |
670.25 |
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