Lexington, Ky. - On Monday, the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) announced their annual Team Academic Awards for 2024-25. The St. Thomas Aquinas College Men's Volleyball team was selected for this distinguished honor as a result of their outstanding work on both the court and in the classroom this past academic year. STAC posted a team GPA of 3.35 under Head Coach Thiago Lopes.

A record number of volleyball programs have earned the AVCA Team Academic Award sponsored by INTENT. More than 1,450 collegiate and high school volleyball programs maintained a year-long grade-point average of 3.3 on a 4.0 scale (or 4.1 on a 5.0 scale), to earn the award for their classroom excellence during the recently completed academic year.

“It is very exciting to see that the record-setting, on-court successes during the 2024-25 season have extended to the classroom,” says AVCA CEO Jaime Gordon. “The fact that more programs earned the Team Academic Award than ever before is evidence of how committed our coaches are when it comes to helping their players reach their goals as both students and athletes.”

STAC finished the 2024-2025 season with an overall record of 16-9 (6-0 ECC), capturing the program's second straight East Coast Conference Regular Season and Tournament titles. The Spartans will return ten players from the 24-25 squad. 

Congratulations to all of our Spartan Men's Volleyball Student-Athletes on a job well done.

Official AVCA 2024-25 Team Academic Award Release

About the American Volleyball Coaches Association

The association’s mission is to advance the sport of volleyball with AVCA coaches at the epicenter of leadership, advocacy, and professional development. The membership includes more than 10,000 collegiate, professional, high school, club, and youth volleyball coaches—primarily in the United States. The AVCA represents women’s volleyball, men’s volleyball, and beach volleyball coaches, and works to increase exposure and recognition for the sport of volleyball.