All in all, the past year has been an exceptionally successful season for Cal athletics. Over the past five weeks, Daily Cal sports have put together a top-10 list of all Cal’s 27 varsity sports based on the performance from last season.
No. 10: Men’s gymnastics
“The rankings can be deceptive, but going beyond the numbers, there can be no mistake about it — the Cal men’s gymnastics team is one of the top programs in the country and has an incredibly bright future in front of it.”
No. 9: Women’s soccer
“This group had the ingredients to success written all over it: a posse of savvy seniors to lead the team, a strong freshman class — spearheaded by Pac-12 Freshman of the Year Ifeoma Onumonu — as well as a world class coach, Neil McGuire.”
No. 8: Men’s tennis
“Considering that the Cal men’s tennis team started its season plagued with injuries, the squad’s No. 17 overall finish is pretty impressive.”
No. 7: Women’s tennis
“If the team can live up to the hype, it will be one of the best Cal teams in recent years.”
No. 6: Women’s crew
“In the past six years, the Bears have consistently placed in the top three of the overall NCAA Championships. ”
No. 5: Women’s basketball
“The women’s basketball team will be good — that’s for sure. But relative to their new expectations, which have skyrocketed in the past months, we don’t know if the Bears will meet the self-set benchmarks next year.”
No. 4: Men’s swim
“In spite of last year’s slip from the pinnacle of college swimming, the men’s swim team has cemented its status as one of the few elite teams in the sport. It’s a label that few teams at Cal can boast.”
No. 3: Women’s swim
“With the addition of five-time Olympic gold medalist Missy Franklin, the Bears won’t have anything to worry about for the next few years.”
No. 2: Rugby
“Phooey on Wooden’s Bruins. To heck with Auriemma’s Huskies. Jackson’s Bulls, Auerbach’s Celtics and Stengel’s Yankees can all go take a hike. The Cal rugby team has won 26 national championships since 1980, and Jack Clark has been around for 22 of them.”
No. 1: Men’s golf
“The Cal men’s golf team had one of the greatest seasons of all time. In any sport. Ever.”
