Sears and NACDA Present $100,000 in Academic Scholarships

June 16, 1998

Marco Island, Florida -- The Sears Directors' Cups, presented annually by NACDA were awarded today to three California universities in NCAA Divisions I, II and III and a Canadian university in the NAIA. Athletics directors from Stanford University (Div. I), California State University, Bakersfield (Div. II), the University of California, San Diego (Div. III) and Simon Fraser University (NAIA) accepted the prestigious Sears Directors' Cup at the NACDA Convention in Marco Island, Fla.

"Sears believes that sports enhances personal growth, teaches teamwork and helps one gain more from the college experience," said John H. Costello, Sears senior executive vice president of marketing. "On behalf of Sears and the Sears Directors' Cup, I congratulate first-time winners Cal State-Bakersfield and UC-San Diego and repeat champions, Stanford and Simon Fraser, on their athletics excellence."

The Sears Directors' Cup program, which awards Waterford Crystal trophies to the top athletics programs and a total of $100,000 postgraduate academic scholarships to students in all four collegiate divisions Divisions I, II, III and NAIA, is presented in partnership by Sears and NACDA. The Sears Directors' Cup is the only national awards and academic scholarship program to recognize all NCAA and NAIA championship sports for both women's and men's athletics.

For the first time in the history of the Sears Directors' Cup program, two of the winning schools which do not sponsor football -- California State University-Bakersfield and University of California-San Diego have captured their respective Sears Directors' Cup.

Division I

In Division I, Stanford University Athletics Director Ted Leland accepted the university's fourth Sears Directors' Cup in as many years.

"The Sears Directors' Cup is the ultimate overall achievement for a university's athletics program," Leland said, at the ceremony at the NACDA Convention. "It represents the strength and determined effort of the Cardinal's individual student-athletes and teams."

The Cardinal won the Sears Directors' Cup with a total of 1,010 points, 350 points ahead of runners-up University of North Carolina and University of Florida, which tied for second place. To achieve such a lead, the Cardinal won five national championships during the 1997-98 season in men's cross country, men's tennis, women's volleyball and women's and men's swimming and diving. Other teams contributing to the Sears Directors' Cup points included women's cross country (2nd), men's indoor track and field (2nd), women's tennis (3rd), men's basketball (3rd), fencing (3rd), women's golf (8th), women's softball (9th), women's outdoor track and field (9th), women's gymnastics (14th), men's soccer (17th), men's baseball (25th), women's basketball (33rd) and wrestling (56th).

Division II

For the first time, California State University-Bakersfield won the Sears Directors' Cup in Division II. CSUB Athletics Director Rudy Carvajal was on hand to accept the honor. Cal State-Bakersfield won the Sears Directors' Cup by posting 530 points, 110 ahead of runner-up and defending Sears Directors' Cup champion, University of California-Davis.

To accomplish such a feat, the Roadrunners won two national championships during the 1997-98 season in men's soccer and men's swimming and diving. Other teams contributing to Sears Directors' Cup points included women's swimming and diving (2nd), women's volleyball (3rd), women's softball (5th), men's outdoor track and field (8th), women's tennis (9th), men's wrestling (11th), men's golf (11th), men's basketball (17th) and women's outdoor track and field (30th).

Division III

The University of California-San Diego (UCSD) won the Division III Sears Directors' Cup for the first time and Athletics Director Judy Sweet accepted the prestigious award. UCSD won the Sears Directors' Cup by posting 490 points, only 30 ahead of runners-up College of New Jersey and Cortland State University, which tied for second. To pull out the victory, the Tritons won two national championships during the 1997-98 season in women's soccer and women's volleyball.

Other UCSD teams contributing Sears Directors' Cup points included men's swimming and diving (2nd), women's swimming and diving (3rd), men's golf (5th), women's tennis (9th), men's tennis (9th), men's outdoor track and field (13th), men's cross country (16th), women's basketball (17th), fencing (17th), men's soccer (33rd) and women's outdoor track and field (48th).

NAIA

Simon Fraser Athletics Director Michael Dinning accepted the Sears Directors' Cup as the Canadian university repeated as the winner in the NAIA. Simon Fraser (SFU) posted 740 points, an impressive 210 points ahead of runner-up University of Mobile. To achieve such a lead, SFU won three national championships during the 1997-98 season in men's swimming and diving, women's cross country and women's indoor track and field. Other teams contributing Sears Directors' Cup points included women's soccer (2nd), women's swimming and diving (2nd), women's softball (2nd), women's basketball (3rd), men's cross country (9th), men's soccer (13th) and men's indoor track and field (24th).

$100,000 In Academic Scholarships Awarded

Sears and NACDA award five $5,000 postgraduate academic scholarships in each division, a total of $100,000 as part of the Sears Directors' Cup program to assist students who work within the athletics department in support roles, including student managers, student trainers, band members, cheerleaders and other assistants. Four outstanding recipients are selected by a nationwide nomination process, administered by NACDA, while the fifth recipient is a student at the institution which wins the Sears Directors' Cup.

"These scholarships winners, like the four winners of the Sears Directors' Cups, are the best of the best," said R. Elaine Dreidame, senior associate director of athletics at the University of Dayton and chair of the Sears Directors' Cup Committee. "They are indicative of the type of students who dedicate long hours to both academics and athletics departments around the nation."

This year, Sears and NACDA will award each of the top five institutions in all four divisions with Sears Directors' Cup plaques, commemorating their program's dedication to athletics greatness. This year's runner-up institutions included: University of Florida and University of North Carolina (tied for second place), University of California-Los Angeles (4th) and University of Michigan (5th) in Division I; University of California-Davis (2nd), Abilene Christian University (3rd), Barry University (4th) and Florida Southern College (5th) in Division II; Cortland State University and the College of New Jersey (tied for second), Middlebury College and Williams College (tied for fourth) in Division III; and University of Mobile (2nd), University of Findlay (3rd), Oklahoma City University (4th) and the University of Puget Sound (5th) in the NAIA.

The Sears Directors' Cup is the ultimate award for winning the only all-sports competition in intercollegiate athletics. It is a part of the Sears Collegiate Champions program, a comprehensive trophy and academic scholarship program honoring women's and men's sports equally in all divisions. Sears presents more than 2,200 conference and sport champion trophies and a quarter-of-a-million dollars in academic scholarships each year.

Of the 1,278 eligible colleges and universities, a total of 904 (71%) scored points in the four Sears Directors' Cup competitions. Complete final rankings on all of these institutions are available on NACDA's home page at www.nacda.com.

NACDA, now in its 33rd year, serves as the professional and educational association for more than 5,100 collegiate athletics directors, associates, assistants and conference administrators at more than 1,600 institutions throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico. With its network of more than 830 full-line stores and 2,500 off-the-mall stores, Sears, Roebuck and Co. is a leading retailer of apparel, home and automotive products and related services for families throughout North America, serving more than 60 million households. For more information, visit Sears Web site at www.sears.com.

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