Jan. 12, 2011

BERKELEY - California stands in eighth place in the 2010-11 Directors' Cup rankings now that all fall sports have been completed. The Golden Bears earned a total of 270 points on the strength of national runner-up finishes in volleyball and men's water polo.

The 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 20 NCAA-sponsored sports - 10 women's and 10 men's.

Cal has finished among the top 10 at the end of the year each of the last five years and seven times over the past eight years. In 2009-10, the Bears were ninth overall. Cal is one of only three schools across the country - Stanford and Florida are the others - to be in the top 10 the past five years in a row.

For the fall of 2010, the Bears received their most points from volleyball, which got 90 for reaching the final of the NCAA Tournament for the first time. Men's water polo added another 70 for its second-place NCAA finish.

In addition, men's soccer advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals and contributed 73 points, while men's cross country (31st, 12 points) and women's soccer (33rd, 25 points) also added to Cal's score.

Among Pac-10 schools, Cal is second behind Stanford, which owns the overall lead. USC and Washington are tied for 12th, with Oregon 18th and UCLA 24th. The Bears were 33rd at the end of the fall last year before making a move up the standings with strong performances in the winter and spring.

The first Division I winter standings will be released on March 24.

For a complete look at the winter Directors' Cup standings, click here.