Volleyball Earns AVCA Academic Honor
August 07, 2013 | Women's Volleyball, Academic Services
Aug. 7, 2013
The American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) announced today that the University of Louisville volleyball team has earned the AVCA Team Academic Award for the 2012-2013 season.
The award, which was initiated in the 1992-93 academic year, honors collegiate and high school volleyball teams that displayed excellence in the classroom during the school year by maintaining at least a 3.30 cumulative team grade-point average on a 4.0 scale or a 4.10 cumulative team GPA on a 5.0 scale.
"Excellence doesn't happen by accident, either on the court or in the classroom," said AVCA Executive Director Kathy DeBoer. "It takes consistent preparation, relentless effort, and determined leadership. A full year of academic achievement, by an entire team of individual students, is a remarkable achievement. What better way to start a new season than with a celebration of an award so emblematic of all that is necessary for sustained success."
The AVCA Team Academic Award has become one of the AVCA's fastest growing awards programs, seeing an impressive surge in teams honored over the past several years. Since the 2000-2001 season, the number of recipients has increased every single year but one, while amassing an overall 300% increase over the span of the last decade. Since the award's inception in 1993, the amount of award winners has increased from 62 to its current number of 622.
NCAA Division I recorded their highest-ever total number of recipients, honoring 130 programs while Division II surpassed last year's record of 69 winners with 77 this year. Division III also set a new record with 93 winners and the high school division increased their all-time high of 220 recipients to 253. Finally, the NAIA set a new record with 46 winners garnering the award.
Prior to 2012-2013, only 16 teams had attained the pinnacle of volleyball success in both earning the AVCA Team Academic Award and winning their respective collegiate national championship in the same academic year. This year, the AVCA is proud to recognize two programs who excelled in the classroom and on the court: Concordia University-St. Paul (NCAA Division II) and Clearwater Christian College (NCCAA Division II). U of L was one of 130 Division I teams to be named for this honor.
