May 31, 2002

DURHAM, N.C. - The latest standings of the 2001-02 Division I Sears Directors' Cup have been released with Duke University currently ranking 19th overall with 530.5 points. In ranking the private institutions, Duke ranks fifth overall behind Stanford, Southern California, Notre Dame and Brigham Young.

Stanford University continues to lead the Sears Directors' Cup competition and is on pace to win its eighth consecutive award, presented annually by Sears, Roebuck and Co. and the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) to the best overall collegiate athletics programs in the country.

Duke just received 240 points from the women's golf (100), women's tennis (50), men's tennis (50) and women's lacrosse teams (40) to move up the standings. The Blue Devils are the second-highest Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) school behind North Carolina, which is second.

Developed as a joint effort between USA Today and NACDA, the Sears Directors' Cup program is the only all-sports competition that recognizes the institution in each of the four categories with the best overall athletics program. The Sears Directors' Cup is part of the Sears Collegiate Champions program which annually awards more than 2,200 conference and sport champion trophies and a quarter-of-a-million dollars in academic scholarships.

The final standings will be published at the end of June upon the completion of the College World Series.

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