Cleveland, Ohio - The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse finished eighth in the final 2025-26 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III LEARFIELD Directors' Cup Standings released Tuesday. The Eagles recorded 987.00 points while Washington University-St. Louis (Mo.) captured the award with 1,266.50 points. 

It is UW-La Crosse's best finish since finishing a school-best seventh in 2009-10. The Eagles have recorded 26 top-20 finishes in school history in the LEARFIELD Directors' Cup.  The 987.00 points this year is a school record, breaking the previous mark of 856.00 in 2024-25.

UW-La Crosse has now recorded 12 top-10 finishes overall, including a school-best seventh four times (2003-04, 2004-05, 2006-07, 2009-10). The Eagles finished 10th last season.  
Tufts University (Mass.) placed second this season with 1,252.50 points with Johns Hopkins University (Md.) third with 1,180.00. Emory University (Ga.) finished fourth (1,066.00) and Williams College (Mass.) fifth (1,063.75). The University of Chicago (Ill.) was sixth (1,045.50) followed by New York University seventh (1,029.25), UW-La Crosse eighth (987.00), Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges (Calif.) ninth (888.25) and Amherst College (Mass.) 10th (863.75).

UW-La Crosse is the top Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) institution in the standings. UW-Eau Claire finished 32nd (545.25 points) with UW-Oshkosh 37th (469.50), UW-Whitewater 41st (441.00), UW-River Falls 56th (328.75), UW-Platteville 67th (297.25), UW-Stout 76th (264.00) and UW-Stevens Point 101st (205.50).

UW-La Crosse is one of six institutions to finish in the top-40 in all 29 years of the LEARFIELD College Directors' Cup, joining Williams (Mass.), Amherst (Mass.), Middlebury College (Vt.), Emory (Ga.), and Washington-St. Louis (Mo.). The award was not presented in 2019-20 or 2020-21 due to the COVID-19 public health threat.
 
UW-La Crosse finished with 287.50 points for the spring season, including 100.0 points each for the women's and men's track & field teams sweeping the 2026 NCAA Division III Outdoor Championships. The Eagles'  women's tennis squad earned 50.00 points for playing in the NCAA Division III Second Round and the baseball team earned 37.50 points for advancing to the NCAA Division III Regional Tournament.

The Eagles recorded 421.00 points for the 2025-26 winter season. The Eagles earned 90.0 points each for the men's track & field and wrestling teams placing second at the NCAA Division III Championships; 80.0 points for the women's track & field team finishing fourth at the national meet; 73.0 points for the women's basketball team advancing to the Elite 8; 64.0 points for the men's basketball squad playing in the Sweet 16 and 24.0 points for the men's swimming & diving team finishing 41st at the national championships.

UW-La Crosse earned 278.50 points during the 2025 fall season, including 100.00 for the men's cross country team winning the NCAA Division III Championship, 64.50 points for women's cross country finishing 12th at the national meet, 64.00 for the football squad playing in the third round of the national championships and 50.00 for the soccer team advancing to the NCAA Division III Second Round.

The Learfield 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 national finish in NCAA Championships.