Aug. 9, 2005

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - The Lewis University women's volleyball team was honored by the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) with the organization's Game Plan/AVCA Team Academic Award.

The award, initiated in the 1992-93 academic year, honors college and high school teams that displayed excellence in the classroom by maintaining at least a 3.30 cumulative team grade-point average on a 4.0 scale.

The 17 members of Lewis' 2004-05 team boasted a 3.4 cumulative GPA. Lewis was one of just 26 NCAA Division II institutions to claim the distinction. In addition, this is the third straight year the Flyers have garnered the Team Academic Award.

"This is a great honor and a credit to the achievement of our women athletes," said Lewis head coach Karen Lockyer. "The fact that they are able to balance their studies, while continuing to be successful on the court, is a testament to the quality of young women in our program.

"The most significant thing is not that we won the award, but that our players graduate in four years. That shows they aren't taking light class loads, but working towards their degree and graduating on time. More importantly, these women have been able to find quality jobs in their fields of study."

For the complete list of Team Academic Award honorees, visit www.avca.org.