Hamilton College's athletic program finished in 52nd place in the 2002-03 NACDA Directors' Cup final standings for NCAA Division III. The award is presented annually by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) to the best overall collegiate athletic programs in the country.
Of the 424 eligible colleges and universities in NCAA Division III, a total of 281 scored points in the Directors' Cup competition. Williams College (Mass.) won its seventh Cup in the last eight years. Williams and Hamilton are members of the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC). Eight of the NESCAC's 11 member institutions finished in the top 60 of the Directors' Cup standings.
Hamilton was the top program from the Upstate Collegiate Athletic Association (UCAA), which has nine members. The Continentals amassed a total of 255.5 points from the nine men's and nine women's sports that are included to determine the NCAA Division III standings. Men's lacrosse picked up 70 points for reaching the quarterfinals of the NCAA Championships. Men's basketball earned 64 points for its berth in the Division III Tournament's round of 16. The men's and women's swimming and diving programs registered a total of 121.5 points for finishing 15th and 14th, respectively, at the NCAA Championships.
The Directors' Cup was developed in 1993-94 as a joint effort between NACDA and USA Today. At first the program included just NCAA Division I institutions, but was expanded in 1995-96 to include Divisions II and III and the NAIA. The Directors' Cup is the only all-sports competition that recognizes the institution in each of the four categories with the best overall athletics program.
