CLEVELAND, Ohio – Saint Leo University athletics finished the 2018-19 season ranked 77th in the Learfield Directors' Cup with 268.25 points when the final standings were released Wednesday, June 12 by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA).
 
This marked the 18th Directors' Cup standings (Sears, NACDA, US Sports Academy, or Learfield) the Lions have ranked in while it's the ninth year the Green and Gold finished in the top-100.
 
In all, 268 institutions registered points from the 2018-19 top institution, Grand Valley State University with 1,004.00 points to Holy Names' 5.00 points. The Lions finished in the top 28.7-percent of the standings where the Green and Gold finished seventh among the Sunshine State Conference schools.
 
All 11 SSC institutions registered points and finished in this year's Directors' Cup standings with Tampa taking the top spot with 552.00 points in 12th followed by Barry (14th, 545.50), and Florida Southern (18th, 497.50). 
 
The Lions started off the Directors' Cup in 132nd place after the fall with 25 points from the volleyball team, after reaching their sixth-straight NCAA postseason finishing 33rd. Saint Leo added 24 points, after the winter gaining points from a 25th place finish at the NCAA Swimming National Championships when the men's swim team saw Henrik Dahrendorff secure points in the 200m breaststroke winning the national championship. Saint Leo sat 189th in the standings with 49 points.
 
With ground to make up, Saint Leo soared in the standings gaining 219.25 points in the spring with six teams scoring points. Men's golf brought in 59.25 points with a 15th place finish at the national championship while women's tennis took 17th for 50 points. Women's golf (21st, 51.5 points), men's tennis (33rd, 25 points), softball (49th, 25 points) and men's tennis (64th, 8.5 points) helped the Lions climb inside the top-28 percent in the nation.
 
After the 2018-19 standings, the Lions still hold the highest Sunshine State Conference finish in the standings with a second place finish in 2015-16 where Barry (1997-98) holds the second highest of third. Florida Southern and Saint Leo both have fourth place finishes with the Green and Gold in 2017-18 and the Moccasins in 1998-99 and 1999-2000.
 
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.
 
For the latest news, updates, and information on the Saint Leo Department of Athletics, be sure to visit SaintLeoLions.com. Fans can also stay up-to-date on the latest Lions news by following Saint Leo Athletics on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
  Complete standings and the scoring structure can be found on NACDA's website at www.directorscup.org. In addition, please visit www.thedirectorscup.com, like us on Facebook at facebook.com/ldirectorscup or follow us on Twitter @ldirectorscup.
 
About Learfield: An industry leader for more than four decades, Learfield has a deep presence in the college athletics landscape nationwide. It manages the multimedia and sponsorship rights for nearly 130 collegiate institutions, conferences and arenas, and supports athletic department's at all competitive levels as title sponsor of the prestigious Learfield Directors' Cup for 10 years. Learfield also provides its collegiate partners access to professional concessions and ticket sales; branding, licensing and trademark consulting; digital and social platform expertise; campus-wide business and sponsorship development; and venue and technology systems through its affiliated companies.