Stanford Men’s Athletics captured its first Capital One Cup as the nation’s most successful athletics program during the 2015-16 campaign.  The Cardinal women finished second after winning the Cup for three straight years.

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 all collegiate sports. Teams earn points for their schools based on their top-10 finishes in NCAA championships and final official coaches’ polls across 21 women’s and 20 men’s sports.

Stanford and USC, the winner on the women’s side, will receive a combined $400,000 in student-athlete scholarships and will both be recognized at the 2016 ESPYS on July 13.

The Stanford men totaled 126 points, edging runner-up North Carolina (108). The Cardinal women scored 86 points, losing out to USC (94).

Stanford got off to a strong start in the 2015-16 academic year by winning the NCAA title in men’s soccer, and secured top-10 finishes from football (ranked No. 3 in final USA Today Coaches’ Poll) and men’s water polo (ranked No. 5 in final CWPA poll).

In the spring, Stanford received boosts from men’s track and field (eighth at NCAA Championships, sixth at MPSF Championships), men’s gymnastics (NCAA runner-up) and men’s volleyball (ranked No. 6 in final AVCA poll).

The Cardinal women earned a national championship in tennis as well as top-10 finishes in soccer, gymnastics, swimming and diving, golf, lacrosse, outdoor track and field, rowing and water polo.

Prior to this year, Stanford’s best performance in the Men’s Cup was a fifth-place finish in the 2010-11 inaugural trophy presentation.

Contact Matthew Oh at mattoh ‘at’ stanforddaily.com.