After a strong spring season, Middlebury overtook Washington University (Mo.) this past June to win its first ever Directors' Cup, awarded annually to the top athletic program in each of the three NCAA divisions as well as the NAIA.
The win follows a streak of eight consecutive top-five finishes for the Panthers, who finished second to conference rival Williams a year ago, and breaks a streak of 13 consecutive wins for the Ephs.
The competition, sponsored by both the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and Learfield Sports, awards points for overall team finishes in NCAA play in up to 18 sports, with a school earning up to 100 points for a first-place finish. Middlebury racked up 389.75 points in the spring for a total of 1040.75, outpacing runner-up Washington University, who finished with 980.25. Williams rounded out the top three with 964.50 points.
The final tally favored Middlebury despite the fact that no Panthers teams won titles in the 2011-2012 year, the first time in 10 years that the school has failed to win any national championships. This year's winning point total is actually less than the 1063.17 points earned by the Panthers last year, which earned second place.
"It was just chance last year that we had the right combination of success to win the Cup," said Director of Athletics Erin Quinn. "It is rewarding that it is the by-product of hard work and commitment across the department, and not the focused attempt to specifically win the Cup."
Top-ten finishes in four women's fall sports placed Middlebury in the running at second place heading into the winter season.
The Panthers retained the second spot through the winter with four more high finishes, while also benefitting from the women's distance medley relay's national championship run on the indoor track.
With the spring season approaching, Middlebury sat 16.50 points behind leader Washington University and 21.25 ahead of third-place Amherst. Middlebury used four more top-ten finishes to leapfrog Washington for the top spot in the final standings and win its first cup in school history.
In addition to Middlebury's overall win, members of the NESCAC placed strongly across the board. Schools from the conference took three of the top four places overall and four of the top seven. No other conference had even two members finish among the top ten.
654.25 of Middlebury's points during the year came in women's sports, accounting for nearly 63 percent of the final total, as all four of the Panthers' top-five finishes were on the women's side.
"What made the difference this year was the success of our women's teams; cross-country, field hockey, swimming, volleyball, hockey, indoor track, outdoor track, tennis and  lacrosse all had strong showings in NCAA play," said Associate Athletic Director and head oach of Women's Lacrosse Missy Foote, who has been with the Middlebury athletic program since 1977. "It was the accomplishments of many that contributed to this honor. That to me is the mark of a successful athletic program."
Middlebury Wins First Ever Directors' Cup
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