CLEVELAND – For the third consecutive year, the Marian University Athletics Department boasted a top-five finish in the annual Learfield Director's Cup, Marian finished fourth in the final NAIA Standings, placing in the same final position as they did in the 2023-24 athletics year. The final standings were released this afternoon at the annual NACDA Convention.
Marian finished fourth overall this year with 872.75 total points. The Knights scored in three of the four sports that must be counted in the final standings – women's basketball, men's soccer, and women's volleyball – with five sports omitted: women's bowling, men's wrestling, men's golf, women's tennis and women's outdoor track and field. Marian won the national championship in men's indoor track and field and men's bowling, winning team championships for the first time since 2019 when the Knights were NAIA Champions in volleyball. The fourth-place finish matches the final placement from the 2023-24 year.
Women's golf led the spring scoring with 85 points for their third-place finish, while men's track and field scored 80 points with their fourth-place finish. Softball tied for fifth and scored 78 points after making a run in the 2025 NAIA World Series. Women's tennis finished ninth, men's golf finished 20th, and women's track and field finished 40th, with each of their scores being omitted from the final totals.
Cumberlands (Kentucky) finishes first in the Learfield Directors' Cup standings with 1,014 total points. Overall, Cumberlands scored in 22 total sports, including all 4 sports that must be counted towards the final standings. Keiser took second place overall with 954 points, and Indiana Wesleyan finished ahead of the Knights in third place, scoring 889.25 points. Each of the top-four schools won at least one team championship in the 2024-25 year. William Carey finished fifth overall with 832 points.
Marian and Indiana Wesleyan were the lone members of the Crossroads League to place in the top-25. Taylor finished just outside the top-25 in 28th overall. Eight of 10 Crossroads League members finished in the top 100.
This is the sixth time Marian has finished in the top 10, with the previous years coming in 2015-16, 2020-21, 2021-22, 2022-23, and 2023-24.
Overall, 13 sports are counted in the final NAIA standings, four of which must be men's basketball, men's soccer, women's basketball and women's volleyball. The next highest (9 max.) sports scored for each institution, regardless of gender, are used in the standings.
About Learfield: Learfield is the media and technology company powering college athletics. Through its digital and physical platforms, Learfield owns and leverages a deep data set and relationships in the industry to drive revenue, growth, brand awareness, and fan engagement for brands, sports, and entertainment properties. With ties to over 1,200 collegiate institutions and over 12,000 local and national brand partners, Learfield's presence in college sports and live events delivers influence and maximizes reach to target audiences. With solutions for a 365-day, 24/7 fan experience, Learfield enables schools and brands to connect with fans through licensed merchandise, game ticketing, donor identification for athletic programs, exclusive custom content, innovative marketing initiatives, NIL solutions, and advanced digital platforms. Since 2008, it has served as title sponsor for the acclaimed Learfield Directors' Cup, supporting athletic departments across all divisions.
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