SMSU Volleyball Earns Team Academic Award for 2023

The 2023 Southwest Minnesota State University volleyball team has received the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Team Academic Award sponsored by INTENT for the 2023-24 academic year.

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. SMSU earned the additional distinction of being named to the "Team Academic Honor Roll," which celebrates programs in the Top 20 percent of GPAs for their division.

SMSU finished the 2023-24 academic year with a GPA of 3.90. The Mustangs had nine student-athletes earn Academic All-NSIC honors in 2023, while four Mustangs, including returning senior Saari Kuehl and returning junior Karli Arkell, earned College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District accolades.

“We are pleased that the record-setting success of the 2023-24 season on the court has extended to the classroom, too, as evidenced by more programs earning the AVCA Team Academic Award than ever before,” said AVCA CEO Dr. Jaime Gordon. “This is a great example of how committed our coaches are when it comes to helping their players reach their full potential as both students and athletes.”

INTENT, which is in its first year of sponsoring the prestigious award, is a game-changing, digital platform links student-athletes (along with military special ops veterans) to a powerful network of candidate-seeking employers. The tech, information and internet company guides student-athletes and service members toward professional and personal success in life after sports and service. SMSU finished the 2023 season with an 23-7 overall record and advanced to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2018.

Third-year head coach Tyler Boddy, hoists a 46-13 (.780) overall record, giving him the highest winning percentage from a Mustang head coach in their first two seasons. SMSU has won 20 or more matches in 19 of the last 20 seasons. The 2024 season will get underway with practice in mid-August before the regular season begins in Pensacola, Fla., on Sept. 6-7 at the Spring Hill/West Florida Invitational. The Mustangs open the home season on Sept. 24 facing Augustana University.