Strong teamwork many times equates to strong success in athletics, and the Oklahoma Panhandle State volleyball team has also translated a strong team effort into academic success, by virtue of being named an American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-Academic Team. This is no small accomplishment – a recognized team must attain a cumulative grade point average of 3.3 (on a 4.0 scale) for an entire school year.
According to head coach Mike Stephens, the members of the team earned a 3.17 GPA for the fall (2009) semester, and with hard work and dedication, a strong overall showing in the classroom raised the team GPA to 3.325 for the 2009-2010 academic year, which satisfied the requirements to earn All-Academic Team honors.
Student athletes in all sports are expected to get the job done in the classroom, as well as in their chosen sport, and Oklahoma Panhandle State University is very proud of its students who compete in intercollegiate athletics.
With their academic performance in the 2009-2010 school year, the OPSU volleyball team has set a strong example of what hard work can accomplish.
The 2009 season was the first at OPSU for Stephens, who coached in the Colorado junior college ranks before coming to Goodwell, and his teams have earned AVCA All-Academic Team honors twice in the last three years.
The OPSU volleyball team looks to repeat their outstanding performance in the classroom again this academic year and they are also gearing up for a big season of competition which opens on September 2 against St. Gregory's in Shawnee, Oklahoma.