The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1000643
32 ■ THE WOLFPACKER BY MATT CARTER B y any measure, the 2017-18 col- lege sports calendar year was a good one for NC State. A sample of its successes include: • It produced four individual national title winners and men's swimming added two relay champions. • In the big four sports of men's basketball, women's basketball, baseball and football, NC State made the postseason in each — reaching the Sweet 16 in women's hoops, hosting a regional in baseball and winning a bowl game in football to finish in the top 25 of the final polls. • Volleyball won its first-ever NCAA Tour- nament game. • Men's golf made it back to the NCAA Championships for the first time since 2012. • NC State boasted the ACC Player of the Year in men's golf, wrestling and men's swimming, and the Defensive Player of the Year in football. • Men's swimming, women's cross coun- try and gymnastics all captured conference ti- tles. Overall, a school-record 11 teams posted top-25 finishes. • Student-athletes posted the highest gradu- ation success rate in the fall in school history. The Atlanta Journal Constitution rated NC State as the second-best athletics program in the ACC overall, and in both men's and wom- en's sports. NCSU also set a school record with a 15th-place showing in the Learfield Directors' Cup. The Pack placed fourth among league schools in the annual ranking of an athletic department's overall success. All this was done with a budget that is es- timated to be ranked No. 48 out of 65 Power Five programs. Here are the highlights from an exclusive interview conducted with NC State director of athletics Debbie Yow: What are your thoughts on the No. 15 finish in the Learfield Directors' Cup? "The Directors' Cup started in 1993-94. We have about 25 years worth of data, and yes it's our best finish ever. "I'm proud of our coaches, our student- athletes and what they've achieved." How would you view the year on the field overall for NC State athletics? "I think the facts speak for themselves, and the fact is that The Atlanta Journal-Constitu- tion saw that as well in terms of their system of rankings [NC State ranked second in the ACC overall, and in both men's and women's sports]. "It's very balanced across the board for men and for women, and we are making progress in almost every sport. Not every single one, but almost every one." A BANNER YEAR NC State Athletics Enjoyed Great Success In 2017-18 Yow said that NC State has worked hard at developing a "culture of excellence" throughout its athletics department, evidenced by this year's school-record No. 15 finish in the Learfield Directors' Cup. PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN