Athletic program claims its first Learfield Directors’ Cup title
June 13, 2023Indiana Tech’s athletic program has earned the 2022-23 Learfield Directors’ Cup, awarded to the NAIA’s most successful athletic program over the past academic year. This award was developed as a joint effort between Learfield, a media, data, and technology services leader in intercollegiate athletics, the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and USA Today. Points are awarded based on each institution’s finish in NAIA Championships.
Indiana Tech earned 867.59 overall points, beating out second-place Marian University (853.50) to win its first-ever Learfield Directors’ Cup. Tech had been building to this first title win with six straight top-10 finishes before this year.
Tech scored 157.50 points during the spring season via two fourth-place finishes from the men’s and women’s track teams. Those performances helped the Warriors maintain the top spot they held after the winter championships, where the Warriors earned 572 points. Tech earned 138 during the fall championships.
Overall, 13 sports are counted in the final NAIA standings, four of which must be men’s basketball, men’s soccer, women’s basketball and women’s volleyball. The next highest (nine maximum) sports scored for each institution, regardless of gender, are used in the standings. The Warriors scored in 11 total sports, including all four sports that are required to be counted towards the final standing. Due to the maximum number of sports counted toward the institution’s score being nine, men’s volleyball and softball were omitted from the Warrior’s final tally.
The Warriors maintained their top spot in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC), out gaining Madonna by 382.25 points and 31 spots. Rounding out the top five for this year’s Cup were Keiser (853.00), Indiana Wesleyan (817.25), and Southeastern (762.75).
Learn more about Indiana Tech athletics at indianatechwarriors.com.