By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech volleyball program was honored as a recipient of the United State Marine Corps - American Volleyball Coaches Association Team Academic Award for the fourth straight year, as announced by the AVCA Monday afternoon. The Golden Eagles also claimed the accolade in 2018-19, 2019-20, and 2020-21, meaning the team has achieved the honor in each of head coach Jeannette Phillips' seasons at the helm of the program.
This past year, the purple and gold compiled an impressive 3.40 GPA collectively over both semesters of the 2021-22 academic year. In addition to the fourth consecutive year winning the award, the Tech squad has now received recognition by the AVCA for its academic excellence nine times since 1997.
"We are so proud of our student-athletes for accepting their roles as student-athletes in that order," Phillips said. "We are constantly emphasizing the necessity to show up and give 100% effort both in the classroom and on the court. It is not an easy job devoting so much of yourself to both arenas of competition, but that is what our team is about. They have maintained such high standards for themselves in the classroom for so long now that it is officially part of our team's make-up and culture."
The team's 3.30 GPA in the spring represented the team's 44th-straight semester exceeding a 3.0 cumulative GPA, a streak dating back to the fall of 2000. The streak marks the longest of any Tech athletic program.
The AVCA Team Academic Award was initiated in the 1992-1993 academic year and honors collegiate and high school volleyball teams that display excellence in the classroom by maintaining a 3.30 cumulative team GPA on a 4.0 scale or a 4.10 cumulative GPA on a 5.0 scale.
Tech was one of 215 Division I teams that earned the academic honor. A whopping 1,213 teams were recognized at all levels of the sport. The Golden Eagles also marked one of six Ohio Valley Conference programs on the list.
Photo by Jim Dillon