The NDSU women’s volleyball team earned its sixth straight American Volleyball Coaches Association Team Academic Award this year. NDSU was one of 71 NCAA Division I women’s volleyball teams honored for the 2008-09 academic year. It was NDSU’s 11th team academic award in 14 years.

The Bison kept a 3.27 team grade-point average in the fall semester while going 24-4 overall and advancing to the NCAA tournament as the Summit League regular season and tournament champions. Three players achieved a 4.0 in the spring semester and the team had a 3.61 grade-point average.

The American Volleyball Coaches Association Team Academic Award began during the 1992-93 season to honor collegiate and high school teams that maintained at least a 3.30 cumulative grade-point average. A record of 409 teams were honored this year.

“Each year I’m impressed all over again by the academic progress of volleyball players,” said American Volleyball Coaches Association executive director Kathy DeBoer. “Total AVCA Team Academic Award winners increased this year by another 55 schools over last year’s record, and even more impressive, 22 percent of our four-year college teams had grade-point averages of 3.2 or better.”

NDSU is scheduled to open the 2009 season Aug. 28-29 against Central Michigan, Florida A&M and Florida State at the Florida State Invitational.