July 20, 2010

ATLANTA, Ga. -

Three Great West Conference women’s basketball teams were recognized by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) for the 2009-10 Academic Top 25 Team Honor Roll. This award, given in NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA and Junior College/Community College, awards teams throughout the nation that carry the highest grade point averages (GPA) for the entire season based on the nomination submitted by WBCA-member head coaches.

"Congratulations to these teams who have excelled academically during the 2009-10 school year," WBCA CEO Beth Bass said. "Each of these coaches set an extraordinary example for their peers to follow by holding academics in such high esteem with their student-athletes."

GPAs are calculated by dividing the total number of quality points earned by each student-athlete on an institution's roster in the given academic terms by the total number of hours earned by the team. The GPAs are rounded to the nearest thousandth of a point. Per a motion passed by the WBCA Board of Directors in 2007, teams making the list of Academic Top 25 Team Honor Roll must obtain at least a 3.000 overall GPA.

The award, given in NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA and Junior College/Community College, awards teams throughout the nation that carry the highest grade point averages (GPA) for the entire season based on the nomination submitted by WBCA-member head coaches.

Utah Valley University is appearing on the WBCA Academic Top 25 Team Honor Roll for the fourth time. 2009-10 marks the first year that the Wolverines secured the top spot amongst NCAA Division I institutions. Aside from its classroom successes, Utah Valley University finished the season with a record of 10-22 and was the Great West Tournament champions.

Also, representing the Great West Conference was North Dakota (10th) with a 3.442 team GPA and South Dakota holding the 16th spot with a team GPA of 3.368.

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--GWC--