|
 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |
Jock Schools Back-to-school time is here and so is Sports Illustrated For Women's annual guide to the best colleges for women athletes. Scroll down this page to read all about our Top 10 Division I schools, and check out the rest of our guide in the September/October issue of SI For Women -- on newsstands now. In addition to ranking the top D-I schools, we've added D-II and D-III and a page of women's colleges. We've also expanded our section on how to find a scholarship.
1. Stanford It was a down year on the Palo Alto campus: Golf, tennis and volleyball came in second at the NCAA championships, and swimming, cross-country and water polo finished third nationally. O.K., make that a relatively down year; the school has won more NCAA women's team championships (25) and total NCAA titles (78), and has more alums in the WNBA (13) than any other. Although grads include elite athletes like swimmer Jenny Thompson and soccer star Julie Foudy, everyone gets Olympic treatment -- the deluxe Avery Aquatic Center is open to all Stanford staff and students, and night owls have their choice of two fitness centers open until 2 a.m. "There are world-class people in every department," says women's swimming coach Richard Quick. "We don't put athletes on a pedestal." No need to: They're standing tall without one. Bottom line: Despite a base tuition of nearly $25,000, the mix of hard-core athletics and academics is hard to beat.
2. Florida Just try to name an activity not available at Florida. Skateboarding, ice hockey, butokukan? All club sports. Pickleball, roller hockey, the Swamp Bowl? The first two are intramural offerings, and the last is a flag-football tournament. To relax, try Gainesville's Lake Wauburg, where you can rent canoes and kayaks, but heed the stay-away-from-the-alligators rule. Athletes from other schools would like to avoid the Gators, too; a hefty budget and great facilities produce top-level performances in a range of sports. (Women's tennis alone nabbed three NCAA titles in the '90s.) "Excellence is expected," says All-America soccer player Andrea Sellers, a junior. "It raises the bar so much higher." Bottom line: Balmy temps and a $10 million-plus women's sports budget make this a female-athlete mecca.
3. Texas The biggest complaint at Texas is that the basketball team may occasionally be forced to share a locker room with Big Bird or 'N Sync at the Frank Erwin Center. The Longhorns' home court also just happens to be Austin's biggest auditorium. "We're definitely taken care of," says junior volleyball player Kathy Tilson, an Austin native who as a child "thought you had to be the best to play for Texas." Just about: The Longhorns have won 24 women's NCAA team titles, second only to Stanford. Although all varsity sports are strong thanks to the attentions of athletic director Jody Conradt, the hottest teams are track, tennis, swimming and basketball, all of which sneaked into the finals of last year's Big 12 tournament. If burnt orange isn't your color, club sports range from aikido to wrestling (yes, it's coed); and Gregory Gym has more than 50 pieces of aerobics equipment, an indoor track, seven basketball courts and a rock-climbing wall. For those times when you just need to break from the herd, you can head for the running and cycling paths around nearby Lake Austin. Bottom line: With a massive student body, acres of facilities and screaming spirit, Texas is living very large.
4. North Carolina Although the Tar Heels draw some die-hard fans, few can match the intensity of two local retirees, Art Halpern and Ray Jefferies, who are practically fixtures at the women's soccer games on Fetzer Field and even around the spankin' new $1.7 million McCaskill Soccer Center. "They come to every practice, shag balls for us and even meet us at the airport after away games," says senior midfielder Laurie Schwoy, whose team won its 16th national championship last year. While the women's hoops team lacks its own senior-citizen cheering squad, it does have the renowned Carmichael Auditorium (former stamping grounds of Michael Jordan) at its disposal -- with exclusive use of a luxe locker room featuring a kitchen and computer-equipped study carrels. (Those too vertically challenged to make the varsity squad can always try the Napoleon League basketball teams -- both men's and women's.) For non-hoops players the sports offerings are extensive, from disk golf to the mountain-goat climb (a kick-ass trail run) to good old kickball. Jocks or not, all students have to pass two gym classes and a swim test before they can graduate, which just makes sense at a school where, according to Schwoy, "there's a great athletic fever." Bottom line: Although soccer rules, 14 other women's sports are alive and thriving in Chapel Hill.
5. UCLA On paper, UCLA looks unreal," says Stacey Nuveman, a junior softball player (catcher) and member of the 2000 Olympic team. "Then you visit, and it's unbelievable." In La La Land superlatives are common, and in UCLA's case they even ring true. Since 1982 the women have won 17 NCAA championships. The athletic powerhouse that superstars like Jackie Joyner-Kersee and Gail Devers (who still drops by to pump iron) put on the map continues to dominate: Last year, the Bruins took home women's championships in indoor track and field, gymnastics and water polo. Those not seeking the spotlight can try surfing or rock climbing. The average facilities are slowly being brought up to Hollywood standards, with Drake Stadium, home to track and soccer, having undergone a $1.5 million makeover last year. Bottom line: A tradition of excellence, a commitment to women athletes and star power make UCLA almost too good to be true.
6. Georgia Before senior tennis player Christa Grey and her team won the national championship, her pal Nicole Schrader, a freestyle swimmer coming off her second consecutive national team title, gave her some advice. "I just told her to enjoy the moment," says Schrader, a senior. "It doesn't happen too often." Maybe not, but it is happening more and more frequently on this female-friendly Athens campus (the soccer and softball teams play in the new Women's Athletic Complex). Seven of the Lady Bulldogs' 10 NCAA championships have come in the past decade (three in gymnastics, two in swimming and two in tennis). Nonvarsity athletes are just as intense. The Georgia Girls intramural softball team won the state tournament in 1998 and 1999, and the two-year-old rugby club dominates southeastern competition. "You come to Georgia," says Schrader, "and you're going to improve as an athlete." If you're not into wearing a uniform, you can check out caving and hang-gliding classes through the outdoor-recreation program or hang out, literally, in the campus ropes course. Bottom line: Georgia is still pigskin central, but the women are coming on strong.
7. Arizona When athletic director Jim Livengood, known as Uncle Livengood to Arizona athletes, spots a "niece" or "nephew" on the Tucson campus, "it doesn't matter where you are," says senior Christina Monteiro, a golfer whose team won the NCAA title this year, "he'll sprint over, shake your hand and say something like, 'Are you having a great day today or what?'" Chances are if you're a Wildcat, you are. Not only are you on a campus ringed by mountains in a region with near-perfect weather, but you're also at a school with red-hot golf (2000 NCAA champs), swimming (2000 NCAA runners-up) and softball teams (13 straight NCAA regional championships). More modest endeavors include an underwater basket-weaving class and a rock-climbing club. Bottom line: Great athletics with big-school support and a one-big-happy-family vibe.
8. Penn State Even though senior volleyball player Katie Schumacher's team won the national championship, she says her athletic performance last winter "stunk." She's referring not to her team's 3-0 defeat of Stanford but to the end of her intramural basketball team's three-year championship winning streak. "We still had a good time, though." These are great times for the Lady Lions, who also won the national fencing title and had Top 4 finishes in basketball and soccer. This football stronghold is even giving a nod to the latest trends, with yoga classes and a caving club. Bottom line: Big-time athletics, success and support, all with a small-town feel.
9. Princeton Senior Hilary Matson claims balancing her Ivy League course load with the demands of her Top 10 field hockey team is not as tough as it sounds. "My teammates and I keep each other on track," she says. Nearly 500 supersmart, superathletic women embrace that challenge, often with astounding success. Last year 11 of the Tigers' 18 teams competed in postseason championships, with lightweight crew winning a second straight national title and squash and lacrosse taking second overall. For more casual recreation, the Cane Spree, a 16-event intramural competition, pits more than 800 freshmen and sophomores against each other. Bottom line: Athletes whose SAT scores match their athletic abilities will shine here.
10. Maryland If the sport involves carrying a stick and wearing a skirt, chances are Maryland dominates it. The field hockey team won its third national title last fall, and lacrosse took its sixth straight (and eighth overall) this spring. Sadly, situated between D.C. and Baltimore, the Terps vie with seven pro teams for publicity and fans. (Lacrosse crowds usually number fewer than 500.) The location does make for strong diversity as well as social and professional possibilities. Another plus: The immense Campus Rec Center is home to an indoor track, two indoor pools and four basketball courts. Bottom line: An already formidable program improving as fast as the lacrosse team racks up national titles. How do we find these great schools, and how do we rank them? We start with won- lost records; then we factor in the tangibles, such as Sears Directors' Cup points (awarded to schools in each division with successful varsity programs); and the intangibles, such as opportunities for nonvarsity athletes, fitness centers and female-friendly traditions. We also get on-site evaluations from correspondents.
1. UC Davis Attention, UC Davis fans: Watch for flying burritos. Nearly every home game features projectile Tex-Mex, courtesy of the Aggie Pack, the rowdy student spirit group. "They're nuts, but they're our backbone," says track and field coach Deanne Vochatzer. Stellar fan support in an idyllic northern California setting isn't the only selling point. Strong academics and an enthusiastic administration have also contributed to the Aggies' success: Since 1996 the school has won three Sears Directors' Cups, awarded to colleges dedicated to maintaining successful, broad-based programs in men's and women's sports. In '99, track and field athlete Jamila Demby was named the NCAA Woman of the Year, the only D-II athlete ever to receive the award. The facilities are equally impressive. Renovations on the tennis center will be complete by 2001, and a new aquatic facility, rec center and stadium are scheduled to open in 2003. "The more involved you get, the more support you find from your teammates and the sports office," says Jill Shapiro, a 2000 grad who captained the club rugby team. "Coming here was one of the best decisions I've ever made." Bottom line: Winning teams, strong spirit and a gorgeous campus.
2. Bloomsburg Despite the field hockey team's four consecutive NCAA titles, the softball team's 18 straight NCAA tournament appearances and the fact that both are coached by Jan Hutchinson, who's racked up the most wins of any coach -- male or female -- in Division II history, it's hard to single out one or two dominant women's teams at this central Pennsylvania school. One third of the women participate in club and intramural sports -- from slo-pitch softball to horseshoes. Add classes like Women in Sports, a killer outdoor-rec program and state-school tuition levels, and you've got a girl-jock paradise. Bottom line: From president Jessica Kozloff to tennis All-America Danielle Faretta, women rule here -- and have a better won-lost record than the men.
3. Abilene Christian Like most Texans, the Wildcats do things bigger. In 1995 the university approved fully funded scholarships and a stadium for women's softball. "By opening day," says coach Carol Tabor, "we had Wells Field, the finest facility around." Support like this no doubt contributed to the 21 women's NCAA track and field championships and a Top 10 tennis program. Club sports are scarce, but 19 of the 24 intramural sports have women's divisions. "You're more than just an athlete or a student," says 2000 graduate and basketball All-America Jackie Washington (née Bucher). "You're one big family." Bottom line: Elite athletics and big-school spending with small-town style.
1. Williams Don't let the purple cow mascot fool you: Williams takes its sports almost as seriously as it takes its studies. "Academics definitely come first, but our teams compete at a very high level," says sophomore Healy Thompson, a shot-putter and club rugby player. The rural western Massachusetts campus is expansive enough to ensure that each Williams team has its own practice field and a game field. The school also has two gyms, two tracks, 20 tennis courts and an ice rink -- oh, yes, and a golf course and equestrian center. Club sports, ranging from curling to swing dancing, are a popular pastime for varsity athletes, and six intramural teams provide casual competition. As if all that weren't enough, the Ephwomen (named for college founder Ephraim Williams) have a higher cumulative GPA than the total student body. Is it any wonder that no women's team in school history has a losing record? Bottom line: A place for jocks with smarts, or brainiacs with skills, to thrive.
2. The College of New Jersey For Dana Latona, a Division III women's lacrosse player of the year and MVP of the NCAA tournament, being part of TCNJ's winning history is her greatest achievement. Twenty of the school's 29 women's NCAA titles belong to lacrosse and field hockey, both led by coach Sharon Pfluger. For nonvarsity types, there's everything from deep-sea fishing to paintball. Bottom line: A championship tradition with top-notch academics, at bargain tuition prices.
3. Trinity When assistant athletic director Julie Jenkins says it's been "a super year," she's putting it mildly. The Tigers' tennis team won the national championship, the volleyball team (coached by Jenkins) took second and the soccer team reached the NCAA quarterfinals. Success at this San Antonio institution stems from a can-do spirit and the perspective of athletic director Bob King: "Every sport is treated the same. The football team cheers on the volleyball team and vice versa." Bottom line: After 25 years of women's sports, the momentum is still building.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
