Well, not everyone can be No. 1. But Emory’s athletics program can take pride in being No. 2 in the nation among some 1,000 NCAA schools in producing Academic All-Americans.

Emory produced nine Academic All-Americans in 2001–02, a number exceeded only by the University of Nebraska. Two Emory seniors, Andrea Pawliczek and Tom Shane, were recognized as the Academic All-Americans of the Year for women’s soccer and men’s swimming, respectively, in the college division. The Academic All-America program honors the best student-athletes from all intercollegiate athletic programs regardless of division.

Among those schools finishing behind Emory for most Academic All-Americans in the past year were Notre Dame (8), Alabama (7), Kentucky (6), Seton Hall (6), Penn State (6), Iowa (5), MIT (5), Kansas State (5), Yale (5), Georgia Tech (5) and Arkansas (5).
In addition, six Emory student-athletes earned prestigious $5,000 NCAA postgraduate scholarships to pursue graduate studies. Only Stanford had more honorees.

Among those schools finishing behind Emory for most NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship recipients in the past year were Nebraska (3), North Carolina State (3), BYU (2), Georgia (2), MIT (2) and Utah (2).

But it wasn’t all work and no play for Emory student-athletes. Emory finished fifth in the nation among 413 NCAA Division III schools in the final 2002 standings for the Sears Directors’ Cup, which is presented to the school with the best all-around athletics program. This is the seventh consecutive year Emory has finished in the Top 25 nationally, and the fourth time in seven years Emory has placed in the Top 10.

Standings are computed using a mathematical formula based on each school’s finish at the NCAA national championships in the respective sports. Emory benefited from six Top 10 finishes at the nationals and nine Top 25 finishes.

Teams placing in the Top 10 nationally were men’s tennis (second), women’s tennis (second), women’s swimming and diving (third), men’s swimming and diving (third), softball (third), and women’s track and field (ninth). Of Emory’s 18 varsity teams, 10 were selected for or scored at their respective NCAA national championship.

Emory finished fourth in the 2001 Directors’ Cup standings, 14th in 2000, 22nd in 1999, 14th in 1998, fourth in 1997 and seventh in 1996, the first year that standings were compiled for Div. III schools.

Emory is one of just five schools in the nation—along with Stanford, Notre Dame, UC-Berkeley, and Washington (Mo.)—to place in the Top 20 in both the Directors’ Cup standings (fifth) and the latest annual U.S. News and World Report rankings of best national universities (18th).