MOBILE, Ala-- The University of Mobile volleyball team was one of only 33 NAIA volleyball programs to earn the AVCA Team Academic Award for the 2011-12 season. The American Volleyball Coaches Association honored 533 teams overall.

The award, which was initiated in 1992-93, honors both high school and collegiate volleyball teams that maintain a 3.30 cumulative grade-point average on a 4.0 scale. The Lady Rams produced a 3.43 GPA during the 2011-12 season.

"We are very proud of the success of the players in the classroom," UMobile Head Coach Jon Campbell said. "They committed themselves to a high standard, and they deserve to be rewarded for their achievement."

The Team Academic Award has become one of the AVCA’s fastest growing awards programs, seeing an impressive surge in teams honored over the past several years. Since the 2000-2001 season, the number of recipients has increased every single year but one, while amassing an overall 200% increase over the span of the last decade.  Since the award’s inception in 1993, the award has risen by an astounding 760%. NCAA Division I recorded their highest-ever total number of recipients, honoring 102 programs while Division III easily surpassed last year’s record of 57 winners with 67 this year. Division III also set a new record with 90 winners and the high school division increased their all-time high of 192 recipients to 220. Finally, the NCAA men broke new ground landing a record seven schools on this year’s AVCA Team Academic Award list.

Breakdown By Classification:
NCAA Division I Women: 102
NCAA Division II Women: 67
NCAA Division III Women: 90
NAIA Women: 33
Two-Year College Women: 13
NCCAA Women: 1
NCAA Collegiate Men: 7
High School Girls: 198
High School Boys: 22