STARKVILLE, Miss. ‑ For the second time in three years and the fourth time overall Mississippi State University’s volleyball program has been cited by the American Volleyball Coaches Association for its success in the classroom.

Mississippi State is among 94 NCAA Division I schools selected to receive the 2009‑2010 AVCA Team Academic Award for women’s volleyball, which honors teams that have displayed excellence in the classroom by maintaining at least a 3.30 cumulative team grade‑point average in a school year. The Volleyball Bulldogs compiled a 3.47 team GPA in 2009‑2010, including an all‑time best semester average of 3.49 during the 2010 spring term. Two other SEC teams, Alabama and South Carolina, also received the award, announced this week by the AVCA, based in Lexington, Ky.

“It is such an honor for our team to receive this national award,” said second‑year MSU head volleyball coach Jenny Hazelwood. “It has been amazing to see a group of girls that is committed to being great athletes and great students.  We want them to be competitors in
everything that they do and to do things the right way all of the time. This award reflects not only the relentless effort of our student‑athletes but also the tireless support of our athletic academics staff and the commitment of the athletics department and our University to excellence in athletics and academics.”

Mississippi State also received the AVCA’s team academic award in 2000‑01, 2001‑02 and 2007‑08. State is among eight SEC member schools that have received the national academic award over the past 10 years. MSU, Alabama and Florida lead the league during that span with four academic team honors each.

Ten of MSU’s 14 rostered players earned either SEC Academic Honor Roll or SEC Freshman Academic Honor Roll status in 2009‑2010.