July 21, 2011

Arizona State volleyball on the rise going into 2011 (by Jeff Metcalfe, Arizona Republic)

TEMPE- The Arizona State University volleyball team has earned the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Team Academic Award for the 2010-11 season, the AVCA announced.

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.

"A hearty congratulations to all the volleyball coaches whose teams won the 2011 AVCA Team Academic Award," said AVCA Executive Director Kathy DeBoer. "Teams do not succeed in the classroom by accident any more so than they do on the court. The same coach who taught them volleyball skills cared enough about their academic achievement to gather their grades, calculate their GPA and submit a nomination on their behalf. In doing so, these coaches sent a clear message that classroom success is just as important as court success. All involved should celebrate this award."

The team's overall cumulative GPA during the 2010-11 school year was above a 3.5 and 18 student-athletes earned Maroon and Gold Scholar Athletes honors, which requires a 3.0 GPA or higher. Two student-athletes recorded a 4.0 GPA, including Sofie Schlagintweit, who maintains a 4.0 GPA and is set to graduate in Spring 2012 with a degree in Microbiology, and eight upheld a 3.5 GPA or higher.

ASU now has 50 Pac-10 academic honors recipients after five members of the team received Pac-10 All-Academic recognition in 2010-11, including Honorable Mention honorees Sarah Johnson, Sonja Markanovich, Malia Marquardt and Sarah Reaves.

Cat Highmark, who will miss the upcoming season due to injury, was named to the Pac-10 All-Academic First Team, extending ASU's streak to eight years of having a First-Team member. She also earned a spot on the CoSIDA ESPN the Magazine All-Academic Third Team.

ABOUT AVCA
The AVCA, with its headquarters in Lexington, Ky., is managed by Associations International. The mission of the AVCA is to develop and grow the sport of volleyball; with a membership of over 5,000 and counting, the AVCA provides a professional network for those individuals and companies dedicated to enhancing and developing the sport. Members are comprised of national and international coaches, collegiate, high school, club, youth and Olympic coaches, as well as club directors. Other members include former players, officials, media members and other friends of volleyball. As a group, the AVCA is committed to the development, growth, advancement and publicity of volleyball throughout the world. Further information is available at www.avca.org.