Volleyball team earns academic honor
ESU Sports Information
Thursday, July 23, 2009
For the fourth time in head coach Bing Xu’s five years, the Emporia State University volleyball team earned a 2008-09 Team Academic Award from the American Volleyball Coaches Association. It is the sixth time in the last seven years that ESU has been honored.
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.
During the 2008-09 academic year, ESU maintained a 3.45 cumulative GPA. Eleven Hornets held a 3.00 cumulative GPA or higher.
The Hornets are one of 46 NCAA Division II teams to be honored for their academic achievement by the AVCA this year. ESU was one of five MIAA teams to make the grade and advanced farther than the other four league teams in the NCAA Tournament.
ESU returns four of six starters and its libero from last year’s 34-4 MIAA Championship team. Junior Ting Liu was a first-team AVCA All-American and the MIAA’s Most Valuable Player. Senior Arica Shepard earned third-team AVCA All-American honors.
The Hornets open their season on Aug. 28 at the UNO Volleyball Showcase in Omaha, Neb., and will play their first home match on Sept. 18 against Missouri Western. Season tickets are on sale now at the ESU athletic ticket office located in the ESU Memorial Union.