W&L Athletics Places 12th Nationally in Final Learfield Directors’ Cup Standings The finish equals the best placing in school history.

Athletics Communications
June 12, 2026

The Washington and Lee University athletics program placed 12th in the final 2025-26 Division III Learfield Directors’ Cup standings released by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA).

The 12th-place finish matches W&L’s highest-ever finish and its 803.75 points represent the best total in school history. The previous best was 791.5 points in 2024-25 when the Generals also finished 12th overall, a placing that was also achieved in 2018 and 2022.

Washington and Lee’s ascent was fueled by a historic spring campaign that produced 394.75 points during the championship season, the highest season total in school history. Women’s golf led the charge with 80 points following a fourth-place finish at the NCAA Division III Championships, while men’s golf added 72.5 points after placing sixth nationally. Women’s tennis contributed 73 points with its run to the NCAA Quarterfinals, and men’s lacrosse added 64 points. Women’s lacrosse and men’s tennis each supplied 50 points, while women’s outdoor track and field contributed five points behind a trio of All-America performances.

The Generals were also the top-performing institution in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC), finishing well ahead of conference rivals Lynchburg, which placed 35th with 493.50 points, and Randolph-Macon, which finished 61st with 312.50 points.

The final standings were topped by Washington University in St. Louis, which claimed its first Learfield Directors’ Cup title with 1,266.50 points. Tufts finished second with 1,252.50 points, followed by Johns Hopkins in third with 1,180.00 points. Emory placed fourth with 1,066.00 points, while Williams rounded out the top five with 1,063.75 points.

The Learfield Directors’ Cup recognizes broad-based excellence in collegiate athletics and awards points based on institutional finishes at NCAA Championships. In Division III, scores from 18 sports are counted in the final standings, including men’s and women’s soccer and men’s and women’s basketball, plus the next 14 highest-scoring sports regardless of gender.

Washington and Lee’s 12th-place finish marks the latest milestone in a sustained stretch of national success across the Generals’ athletic programs and highlights one of the most successful all-around athletic years in school history.