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 second straight year in which the Crusaders have led the nation and the 15th consecutive year in which they have posted a Graduation Success Rate of at least 97 percent.

"Our Holy Cross student-athletes seek excellence in the highest levels of athletics and academics, and I am proud of their ability to juggle the rigorous demands of both," said President Vincent D. Rougeau. "Our consistent graduation rate success reflects our Jesuit mission to champion the whole person, including each student's intellectual, extracurricular, social and spiritual dimensions. The entire campus community can celebrate this achievement, knowing that outcomes like these are a wonderful example of the collaborative and effective teamwork we enjoy at the College."

Holy Cross finished in an eight-way tie for first in the nation with its 99 percent Graduation Success Rate. The seven schools to match the Crusaders at 99 percent were Columbia, Dartmouth, Duke, Harvard, La Salle, Lafayette 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 2014, for which the NCAA has compiled sport-by-sport figures. The average Graduation Success Rate for all sports at the NCAA's 357 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.