Williamsburg, KY – The University of the Cumberlands athletic department caps off a strong season with their third consecutive top-ten finish in the 2021-22 Learfield Directors' Cup standings, announced Thursday.  The Patriots tallied a school record 655.50 points, a seven point improvement over last year, to finish tenth in the NAIA.

The Patriots had a trio of spring sports that scored points to help propel UC into the top-ten of the NAIA. UC counted 163 points from spring championships, 351 points from winter championships, and 141.50 points from the fall championships this season.

Cumberlands baseball earned 57 points for their strong run in the NAIA Opening Round.   After capturing their second straight Mid-South Conference Tournament title, the Patriots earned the third-seed in the Kingsport Bracket.  UC opened the tournament with a 4-2 win over second-seed Warner.  After falling to the elimination bracket, the Patriots rallied with 49 runs over two games, including a 30-8 win over #2 and top-seed in the region Tennessee Wesleyan to help the Patriots advance to regional finals.

Cumberlands also saw strong runs by the women's and men's tennis teams, which tallied 53 points apiece.  Patriots women's tennis went 23-6 on the year, including defeating eighth-ranked Lindsey Wilson 4-2 to capture their first MSC tournament title in program history.  That win helped UC earn the 12^th-seed in the NAIA National Tournament, where they knocked off #22 Mobile 4-1 in the opening round.  After falling in the second round, UC closed out the season ranked 11^th in the NAIA Coaches' Poll, their highest ranking in program history.

The Patriots men's tennis team recorded on of its most successful seasons in program history as they were ranked in the top 15 of the NAIA Coaches' Poll throughout the entire season.  UC earned the 12^th-seed in the national tournament and faced Mobile in the opening round.  Cumberlands tallied it's 20^th sweep of the season in the win over the Rams to advance to the second round before falling to fifth-seed Xavier 4-2.

Men's swimming & diving scored the most points this season for UC earning 85 points for their program-best third place finish.  Women's swimming & diving and men's bowling each posted a top-five finish at their respective championships to score 80 and 71.5 points.  Men's basketball, women's basketball and men's wrestling also counted towards the Patriots total this season.  A top-ten finish by women's soccer garnered 68.5 points to lead the fall sports as women's cross country and men's soccer round out Cumberlands scoring.

Overall, Cumberlands had 22 teams that advanced to the NAIA national championships in their respective sports.

The Learfield Directors' Cup is based on national finishes with 13 teams able to be scored per school, four of which has to be men's and women's basketball, men's soccer and women's volleyball.  Indiana Wesleyan scored 890 points to capture the Directors' Cup, while Keiser placed second.  Lindsey Wilson and Life were the other two MSC schools that finished within the top-15.

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