UAlbany Finishes 89th Among 289 Schools in U.S. Sports Academy Directors' Cup Standings

Cleveland, Ohio – With eight America East Conference championships and five teams making NCAA Tournament appearances, UAlbany finished 89th among 289 Division I institutions in the U.S. Sports Academy Directors' Cup standings. The Great Danes recorded their highest-ever ranking since upgrading to Division I in 1999. The Directors’ Cup is presented annually by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA), United States Sports Academy and USA Today to the best overall collegiate athletics program. Stanford captured its 13th consecutive trophy in 2006-07.

UAlbany celebrated its most successful Division I campaign by winning conference titles in men’s basketball, women’s volleyball, men’s indoor track, baseball, softball, men’s lacrosse, men’s outdoor track, and women’s outdoor track. Women’s indoor track and women’s lacrosse recorded runner-up finishes.

Baseball, softball, women’s volleyball, men’s lacrosse and men’s basketball competed in NCAA tournament play. The men’s lacrosse team, ranked second nationally for six consecutive weeks during the regular season, posted the school’s first-ever NCAA Division I victory and advanced to the quarterfinal round. Softball registered a pair of NCAA wins in reaching the Hempstead Regional final. The basketball squad made its second consecutive trip to the national tournament by defeating Vermont, 60-59, in the America East championship. Volleyball garnered an NCAA berth for the second time in three years, while baseball made its first NCAA appearance.

“We have a dedicated and committed group of student-athletes, coaches, and staff,” said UAlbany Vice President and Director of Athletics Lee McElroy. “The enhanced quality, talent, and skills of these groups coupled with tremendous support from campus administration are both directly related to our success and the consistency of performance both on and off the field of play.”

Individual athletes were nationally recognized for their performances. Joe Greene and Marc Pallozzi earned track and field All-America recognition for the second consecutive year after scoring points at the NCAA Championships in June. Jamar Wilson, the basketball program’s all-time scorer, was voted to the Associated Press All-America Team in the honorable mention category for the second year in a row. Colin Disch, a linebacker of the football team, became the third UAlbany player to be named to the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Division I-AA All-America Team.

In its Division I history, UAlbany has won 25 conference championships and produced 12 NCAA Tournament teams.

Courtesy: UAlbany Athletics