CLEVELAND, Oh. – St. Mary’s College of Maryland has been recognized as one of the Top 100 athletic programs in NCAA Division III, which boasts 443 institutions, with a 98th-place finish in the final Learfield Directors’ Cup standings for the 2023-24 school year.
St. Mary’s College totaled 207 points in recording its highest Directors’ Cup finish as well as its highest point total of all time. The Seahawks also recorded the best placement and most points by any United East Conference member school for the second straight year.
“This final ranking is a testament to combined efforts of our outstanding coaches, student-athletes, and support staff in ensuring we as an institution continue to raise the bar for ourselves and the United East Conference. Along with our UE peers, we collectively continue to raise the profile and notoriety of one of the most up and coming leagues in the country, proving we belong and compete on the biggest stage – NCAA Championships,” Director of Athletics & Recreation Crystal Gibson said.
The Learfield Directors’ Cup was developed as a joint effort between the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and USA Today. Points are awarded based on each institution’s finish in NCAA Championships.
SMCM has appeared in 17 of the 29 Directors’ Cup standings since the program’s inception for Division III athletic programs in 1995-96. St. Mary’s College’s previous highest finish was 113th in 2022-23 with 151 points while the Seahawks collected their most points of 171 previously in 2021-22 to finish 114th.
Eighteen sports are counted in the final Division III standings, four of which must be men’s and women’s soccer and men’s and women’s basketball. The next-highest sports scored for each institution, regardless of gender, are used in the standings.
This spring, the Seahawks scored in three sports: men’s lacrosse, women’s lacrosse, and women’s rowing. During the winter, SMCM collected points in men’s swimming, while St. Mary’s College notched points in field hockey and men’s soccer this past fall.
| SMCM’s History in the Learfield Directors’ Cup | |||||
| Year | Final Rank | Team Points | Fall Points | Winter Points | Spring Points |
| 2023-24 | 98th | 207 | 50 | 47 | 110 |
| 2022-23 | 113th | 151 | 0 | 26 | 125 |
| 2021-22 | 114th | 171 | 0 | 0 | 171 |
| 2015-16 | 241st | 50 | 0 | 0 | 50 |
| 2012-13 | 186th | 98 | 0 | 73 | 25 |
| 2011-12 | 236th | 50 | 0 | 50 | 0 |
| 2010-11 | 214th | 73 | 0 | 73 | 0 |
| 2009-10 | 225th | 64 | 0 | 64 | 0 |
| 2008-09 | 197th | 77 | 25 | 52 | 0 |
| 2007-08 | 155th | 117 | 0 | 64 | 53 |
| 2006-07 | 263rd | 37.5 | 0 | 37.5 | 0 |
| 2003-04 | 200th | 53 | 0 | 0 | 53 |
| 2002-03 | 206th | 53 | 0 | 0 | 53 |
| 2001-02 | 209th | 50 | 0 | 0 | 50 |
| 2000-01 | 247th | 20 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
| 1998-99 | 176th | 20 | 0 | 10 | 10 |
| 1997-98 | 149th | 30 | 0 | 10 | 20 |
