LEXINGTON, Ky. -- The American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) announced today that 1,125 teams have earned the AVCA Team Academic Award for the 2018-2019 season. Of those teams, Augustana earned a spot among 141 other Division II teams on the list. 

The Vikings finished the 2018-19 season with a 3.4 team GPA.

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.

Augustana will open the season at the Loper Pre-Season Invite on September 6 in Kearney, Neb. against Oklahoma Baptist at 10 a.m. They will then travel to Kingsville, Texas to compete in the Texas A&M Kingsville Invite on September 13-14 before starting up conference play at Northern State on Friday, September 20.

2018-19 BREAKDOWN BY CLASSIFICATION

Division                                                   Number of recipients  
NCAA Division I Women                          189  
NCAA Division II Women                         141 
NCAA Division III Women                        175  
NAIA Women                                             51  
Two-Year College                                      21  
NCCAA                                                      1 
Collegiate Men                                          19  
High School Girls                                     444 (5 sand)  
High School Boys                                      43  
Collegiate Beach                                       41

About AVCA
The AVCA, with its headquarters in Lexington, Ky., is managed by Associations International. The mission of the AVCA is to advance the sport of volleyball with AVCA coaches at the epicenter of leadership, advocacy and professional development. With a membership of over 8,000 and counting, the AVCA provides a professional network for those individuals and companies dedicated to enhancing and promoting the sport. Members include collegiate, high school, club, youth and Olympic coaches, as well as volleyball club directors. The AVCA provides education to volleyball coaches, recognition of elite players and coaches, promotion of volleyball competitions throughout the world, and networking opportunities for volleyball products and services providers. Further information is available at www.avca.org.