WORCESTER, Mass. – Holy Cross' athletic teams are tied for first in the nation with an overall graduation rate of 99 percent, according to the Graduation Success Rate Report, which has been released by the NCAA. This marks the 14th straight year in which the Crusaders have posted a Graduation Success Rate of at least 97 percent.

"Our student-athletes are in elite company when it comes to their accomplishments in the classroom," said Holy Cross Director of Athletics Marcus Blossom. "The consistency with which we have achieved academic success can only be realized by hard work and dedication year after year. I am proud of everything we have done in the classroom, and I am confident that our student-athletes will continue to succeed there in the future."

Holy Cross finished in a nine-way tie for first in the nation with its 99 percent Graduation Success Rate. The eight schools to match the Crusaders at 99 percent were Columbia, Dartmouth, Evansville, Harvard, Lafayette, Loyola (Ill.), Samford and Yale. 

Twenty-three of a possible 26 Holy Cross athletic teams achieved a perfect 100 percent graduation rate. The Crusader programs to post perfect graduation rates were baseball, men's basketball, women's basketball, men's cross country, women's cross country, men's golf, women's golf, men's ice hockey, women's ice hockey, men's lacrosse, women's lacrosse, women's rowing, women's soccer, softball, men's swimming and diving, women's swimming and diving, men's tennis, women's tennis, men's indoor track and field, men's outdoor track and field, women's indoor track and field, women's outdoor track and field, and volleyball.

The data reflect the six-year graduation rates for college athletes who entered school in 2013, for which the NCAA has compiled sport-by-sport figures. The average Graduation Success Rate for all sports at the NCAA's 353 Division I institutions stood at 89 percent. 

View the complete NCAA report on Holy Cross' Graduation Success Rates, or access the NCAA's searchable Graduation Success Rate database for more information.