Cleveland, OH – Coming off a winter season that saw 12 of the Patriots 13 winter sports qualify for the NAIA National Championships, the University of the Cumberlands Athletic Department has climbed to sixth place in the 2021-22 Learfield Directors' Cup standings, announced Thursday.   The Patriots tallied 435 points from the winter sports, which was the third most out of any NAIA school.

The Patriots have totaled 576.5 points, which is a 190 points improvements from the 2020-21 season.  Cumberlands sixth place ranking is their highest heading into the spring sports in school history.

Cumberlands found success across all their winter sports led by three top-five finishes.  Men's swimming & diving program's-best third place finish at nationals earned them 85 points in the Learfield Cup.  The Patriots captured the MSC title and had 30 NAIA All-American performance to notch their highest national finish. 

Women's swimming garnered 80 points for their fourth place finish at the NAIA Championships after they captured their tenth consecutive Mid-South Conference crown.

Men's bowling strong finish at the NAIA National Championship earned them a 71.5 points in the Learfield Cup.  This marks the first time in program history that men's bowling has contributed to the Learfield standings.  UC posted the top qualifying seed and won two matches to advance to the final four before falling to the eventual champion Indiana Tech in five games.

Men's wrestling tallied 64.5 points for their 12^th place finish at nationals.  Aaron Johnson and Bryce Nickel garnered NAIA All-American honors to cap off a season in which the Patriots took home the MSC Tournament title. 

Carson Johnson's national runner-up finish in men's track & field lead them to 35 points, while UC earned 21 points from the women's track and field program. 

Both men's and women's basketball notched 25 points for their national tournament appearance as UC also earned points from cheerleading and dance.

The Patriots are the highest Mid-South team in the standings as Lindsey Wilson is in eighth, while Life is sitting in 15^th place. The MSC is one of just three conference to have multiple teams ranked in the top-ten.

The final Learfield Directors' Cup standings are scheduled to come out on June 9^th.  The Patriots are looking for their second top-ten finish in the past three years.

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