Rockhurst finishes fall ranked 24th in Directors’ Cup standings

Rockhurst is ranked 24th at the end of the fall sports season in the NCAA Division II 2012-13 Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup standings with 139 points. Rockhurst leads a group of four schools from the GLVC ranked in the top 50. Indianapolis, Southern Indiana and Quincy also finished in the top 50 from the GLVC.

The Rockhurst men’s soccer program finished in a tie for ninth with 64 points in the ranking formula (and eighth in the final 2012 NSCAA Division II poll) after advancing to the Midwest Regional finals of the NCAA Tournament. The Great Lakes Valley Conference regular season and tournament champions ended the year with an 18-3-2 record. Junior forward Mark Magee and junior goalkeeper Ryan Bass were named NSCAA and Daktronics All-Americans. Head coach Tony Tocco was named the GLVC Coach of the Year for the third time.

The women’s soccer team returned to the NCAA Tournament for the third time in program history while earning 50 points in the Directors’ Cup standings. The Hawks ended the season with a loss in the second round of the NCAA Tournament which brought its final season record to 14-4-3. Sophomore defender Kasey Lierz earned All-America honors from Daktronics. Sophomore forward Taylor Skala, who led the team with 12 goals, was named to the Capital One Academic All-America team.

Rockhurst’s women’s volleyball team advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2006 to earn 25 points in the Directors’ Cup standings. The Hawks finished with a 28-7 overall record and captured their first ever GLVC Tournament championship. Freshman Kelsey Stratman was named to the AVCA All-American third team. Head coach Tracy Rietzke was named the GLVC Coach of the Year for the second time.

The Hawks were the only GLVC school and one of only seven Division II schools to compete in the NCAA Tournament in men’s and women’s soccer, and women’s volleyball in 2012.

The Learfield Sports 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 up to 14 sports—seven women’s and seven men’s.

The next set of standings will be released on March 14 after the conclusion of the NCAA Winter Sports Festival in Alabama with swimming, wrestling and indoor track and field.