For the 12th consecutive season, Western Kentucky has been recognized as a recipient of the AVCA Team Academic Award, the association announced Monday. With a cumulative GPA of 3.61 across the 2017-18 school year, the Lady Toppers have earned the Team Academic Award for the 16th time since 1999.

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.

Since the 2000-01 season, the number of recipients has increased every single year but two, while amassing a 619-team increase over the span of the last decade. Since the award’s inception in 1993, the number of award winners has increased from 62 to its current number of 973.

In total, 164 Division I women’s teams were honored with WKU representing one of nine Conference USA programs on the list.{&end}