LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Coker College women's volleyball team earned the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Team Honor Roll Award with a cumulative team GPA of 3.65, the association announced today.

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. 

The AVCA Team Academic Award, celebrating its 25th year, is the single largest award offered by quantity of schools, players and coaches honored. Since the 2000-2001 season, the number of recipients have increased every single year but two, while amassing a 532 team 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 822.

With 2016-2017 marking the 25th anniversary of the award, the AVCA is introducing additional honors to schools that have a minimum Team Academic Award streak of 15 years, and also for schools that scored the highest GPAs in their respective divisions. In order for a school to be awarded as an honor roll recipient, their division had to reach a minimum number of nominations. For NCAA Division I, II, III, and girls high school, their nomination number allows for a top-25 honor roll. The Cobras were among the top-25 schools in Division II to earn the distinguished award.

"I am very proud of this team for earning such a high honor," said head volleyball coach Julia Rafalowski. "Our student-athletes hold themselves to high academic standards and they work hard to achieve their goals in the classroom."

On the court, the Cobras made great strides during the 2016 season, securing 13 victories and surpassing their win total from the previous year.