Emory finished second in the nation among 430 NCAA Div. III schools in the final 2004 standings for the NACDA Directors' Cup, presented to the school with the best all-around athletics program. This is the sixth time in nine years Emory has finished in the Top 10 nationally for the Directors' Cup and the ninth consecutive year it has finished in the Top 25.

Standings are derived from a mathematical formula based on each school's finish at NCAA national championship tournaments. Emory benefited from one national championship (women's tennis), seven Top 10 finishes and nine Top 20 finishes.

Emory teams placing in the Top 10 nationally were women's tennis (first), men's swimming and diving (second), women's swimming and diving (second), men's tennis (third), volleyball (fourth), golf (fifth), and men's outdoor track and field (10th). Of Emory's 18 varsity teams, 14 qualified or were selected for their respective NCAA national championship.

The Eagles finished second in last year's Directors' Cup standings, fifth in 2002, fourth in 2001, 14th in 2000, 22nd in 1999, 14th in 1998, fourth in 1997 and seventh in 1996, the first year standings were compiled for Div. III.

Emory is one of eight schools in the nation regardless of division--others include Duke, Stanford and Notre Dame--to place in the Top 20 in both the Directors' Cup and the latest U.S. News & World Report rankings of best national universities (Emory placed 18th).

Spring recap
The women's tennis team became the first Div. III squad to repeat as "triple crown" winners by winning the NCAA national team, singles and doubles championships. Further, the doubles runners-up (Margaret Moscato and Carina Alberelli) also were from Emory. Mary Ellen Gordon won her second straight singles title, defeating teammate Jolyn Taylor; Gordon and Taylor then paired to win the doubles championship.

The men's tennis team finished third, its 13th consecutive year in the national quarterfinals. The golf team enjoyed its highest finish (fifth) in school history. The men's outdoor track and field squad placed 10th, its best finish ever, at the NCAA championships. The baseball team finished 42-6 with a ninth-place ranking, and the softball team finished 19th.

Gordon is the first Emory player to be honored with this award, first presented in 1977. She won the NCAA women's tennis "triple crown" in back-to-back years by winning the team, singles and doubles titles in 2003 and 2004. In all, Gordon won eight NCAA championships, making her the most decorated female tennis player in any NCAA division. She became the first player, male or female and in any NCAA division, to win the doubles champion-ship all four years.

Gordon finished with a career record of 115-14 (.891) in singles and 104-20 (.839) in doubles. Against Div. III competition, she was 98-6 (.942) in singles, including 50-0 in the last two seasons combined. She was 89-10 (.899) in doubles against Div. III opponents.

Gordon graduated in May with a bachelor's in business administration.

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