STANFORD, Calif. – Fueled by an NCAA championship in soccer and six top-10 finishes, Stanford captured its first Capital One Cup on the men's side as the nation's most successful athletics program during the 2015-16 campaign.
The Capital One Cup is awarded annually to the best men's and women's NCAA Division I athletics programs for their cumulative on-field performance across multiple sports. Schools earn points based on their teams' top-10 finishes in NCAA championships and final official coaches' polls across 21 women's and 20 men's sports.
USC claimed the Capital One Cup on the women's side. Both programs will receive a combined $400,000 in student-athlete scholarships and also be recognized at the 2016 ESPYS on July 13. It's the first time the Capital One Cup is being awarded to two athletic programs in the same conference.
Stanford totaled 126 points, edging runner-up North Carolina (108) and third-place Ohio State (80). Highlighted by an NCAA title in men's soccer, the Cardinal continued its success in the fall with top-10 finishes from football (Rose Bowl champions, Pac-12 champions, 12-2 overall) and men's water polo (22-8 overall, ranked No. 5 in final CWPA poll). A strong season from men's track and field (eighth at NCAA Championships, sixth at MPSF Championships) was nearly followed up by another national championship effort in men's gymnastics (NCAA runner-up, 10th top-three NCAA finish in 11 seasons). Rounding out the top-10 efforts was men's volleyball (19-6 overall, ranked No. 6 in final AVCA poll).
It's also the fourth Capital One Cup trophy to be awarded to a Stanford athletics program, as the Cardinal took home its third title on the women's side in 2015.
Stanford claimed four national championships during the past academic year, increasing its overall total to 132. Of Stanford's 132 championships, 109 are NCAA titles, with women's tennis also claiming the hardware in 2016. Additionally, the Cardinal captured its sixth lightweight rowing title in the past seven seasons, while also collecting a national crown in synchronized swimming.
ABOUT CAPITAL ONE: Capital One Financial Corporation (www.capitalone.com) is a financial holding company whose subsidiaries, which include Capital One, N.A., and Capital One Bank (USA), N.A., had $221.8 billion in deposits and $330.3 billion in total assets as of March 31, 2016. Headquartered in McLean, Virginia, Capital One offers a broad spectrum of financial products and services to consumers, small businesses and commercial clients through a variety of channels. Capital One, N.A. has branches located primarily in New York, New Jersey, Texas, Louisiana, Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia. A Fortune 500 company, Capital One trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "COF" and is included in the S&P 100 index.
Capital One, an NCAA Corporate Champion, began its affiliation with college sports with the sponsorship of the Capital One Bowl (formerly the Florida Citrus Bowl) in 2001. Since that time, Capital One has sponsored programs including the Capital One Mascot Challenge and Capital One Academic All-America Program. In 2010, it created the Capital One Cup to recognize the best men's and women's Division 1 College Athletics Programs in the country and awards a combined $400,000 in student-athlete scholarships. As an NCAA Corporate Champion, Capital One supports all 90 NCAA Championships. In 2014, Capital One became an official sponsor of the Capital One Orange Bowl and the new College Football Playoff.