HISTORIC FIRST LIFTS AU ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT TO STRONG DIRECTORS’ CUP START

Thanks to a historic season in terms of NCAA Div. II postseason participation, Ashland University’s athletic department has its highest LEARFIELD Directors’ Cup fall point total in 10 years.

As announced by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics on Dec. 22, AU athletics racked up 153 Directors’ Cup points in the fall – the athletic program’s highest fall point total since 2012 (171.25).

Leading the fall charge for the Eagle athletic department was football with 53 points, followed by men’s soccer (50), and women’s soccer and volleyball (25 each). Both the football and men’s soccer teams reached the second round of their respective NCAA Div. II Championship tournaments.

The 2022 fall season marked the first in Ashland athletic department history in which football, volleyball and both soccer teams qualified for the Div. II postseason during the same season. Here’s a closer look at each championship season:

FOOTBALL went 10-2, winning its first outright Great Midwest Athletic Conference championship and beating Notre Dame College for the second time during the season to advance to the second round of the NCAA Div. II playoffs. The Eagles finished with a No. 13 ranking in the 2022 American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Top 25 Poll. Senior inside linebacker Michael Ayers received firstteam All-American honors from the AFCA after recording 81 tackles, three sacks, 11 quarterback hurries, eight pass breakups, three forced fumbles, one interception and one fumble recovery.

WOMEN’S SOCCER ended the 2022 campaign at 15-3-3 overall and 11-1-2 in the Great Midwest, winning the conference tournament

on the road. Ashland played in its fourth consecutive NCAA Div. II postseason tournament, tying Ferris State through 110 minutes before falling in the ninth round of a heartbreaking shootout. Individually, fifth-year center back Rylie Howman anchored a defensive unit that surrendered just 16 goals in 21 games, while sophomore McKinley Mendenhall paced the offense with nine goals and 13 assists.

MEN’S SOCCER finished its 2022 season with a 12-7-1 overall record, including 9-5 in the Great Midwest. The Eagles won the conference tournament on the road, then played host to the program’s first home NCAA Div. II playoff game at Ferguson Field. Haruki Kimura, a fifth-year forward, capped his career strong with 11 goals and a pair of assists.

VOLLEYBALL ended the fall at 23-9 overall and 16-1 in the Great Midwest, the best regular season mark in the league. Ashland hosted the 2022 Great Midwest Tournament, then earned the sixth seed at the 2022 NCAA Div. II Midwest Regional. Fifth-year outside hitter Erin Krupar earned All-American recognition from the American Volleyball Coaches Association for the second time in her career, this time as honorable mention. She knocked down 349 kills. Overall, Ashland’s point total is good for a tie for 21st in the country in the Directors’ Cup through the fall season.

Also during the first semester, ESPORTS had a successful fall season, including the Fortnite team finishing in third-place nationally in the NACE Fortnite Zero Builds Fall Championship, and the Counterstrike: Global Offensive and Overwatch teams qualifying for the NACE national playoffs and getting to the round of 16.