ATLANTA, Ga. –The University of North Dakota women's basketball team finished with the second-highest grade point average (GPA) on the 2008-09 NCAA Division I Academic Top 25 Team Honor Roll announced Thursday by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA). Head coach Gene Roebuck's team finished with a cumulative average of 3.580, just .065 points shy of the DI leader Indiana State.
“This is yet another recognition for the remarkable work Gene and his players did this past season,” UND athletic director Brian Faison said. “Considering that the team was on the road for the majority of the season and traveled over 25,000 miles, this is an amazing accomplishment.”
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 GPA for the entire season based on the nomination submitted by WBCA-member head coaches.
“It is always an honor for the WBCA to recognize these teams for putting together outstanding cumulative grade point averages,” WBCA CEO Beth Bass said. “We want to congratulate each and every one of these teams for their efforts in the classroom and want them to know that we celebrate their hard work. My thanks go out to these teams for setting a benchmark of success academically among their peers in the sport.”
The Fighting Sioux had 14 student-athletes finish above a 3.0, including five with a 4.0.
Last season, UND finished No. 14 at the DII level with a 3.474 cumulative average.
2008-09 NCAA Division I Academic Top 25 Team Honor Roll
|
|
School
|
2008-09 Head Coach
|
Team GPA
|
|
1
|
Indiana State University
|
Jim Wiedie
|
3.645
|
|
2
|
University of North Dakota
|
Gene Roebuck
|
3.580
|
|
3
|
South Dakota State University
|
Aaron Johnston
|
3.571
|
|
4
|
Montana State University-Bozeman
|
Tricia Binford
|
3.501
|
|
5
|
Bowling Green State University
|
Curt Miller
|
3.470
|
|
6
|
University of Northern Iowa
|
Tanya Warren
|
3.437
|
|
7
|
Manhattan College
|
Myndi Hill
|
3.432
|
|
8
|
Western Carolina University
|
Kellie Harper
|
3.428
|
|
9
|
Eastern Washington University
|
Wendy Schuller
|
3.422
|
|
10
|
University of New Mexico
|
Don Flanagan
|
3.414
|
|
11
|
DePaul University
|
Doug Bruno
|
3.402
|
|
12
|
Utah Valley University
|
Cathy Nixon
|
3.390
|
|
13
|
Kansas State University
|
Deb Patterson
|
3.374
|
|
14
|
Wichita State University
|
Jody Adams
|
3.361
|
|
15
|
Lehigh University
|
Susan Troyan
|
3.356
|
|
t16
|
Saint Bonaventure University
|
Jim Crowley
|
3.353
|
|
t16
|
Cornell University
|
Dayna Smith
|
3.353
|
|
18
|
Villanova University
|
Harry Perretta
|
3.346
|
|
19
|
University of Evansville
|
Misty Murphy
|
3.336
|
|
20
|
Oakland University
|
Beckie Francis
|
3.323
|
|
t21
|
Charleston Southern University
|
Julie Goodenough
|
3.320
|
|
t21
|
Columbia University
|
Paul Nixon
|
3.320
|
|
23
|
University of Wisconsin, Green Bay
|
Matthew Bollant
|
3.317
|
|
24
|
University of South Dakota
|
Ryun Williams
|
3.311
|
|
25
|
University of Hartford
|
Jennifer Rizzotti
|
3.308
|
About the WBCA
Founded in 1981, the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) promotes women's basketball by unifying coaches at all levels to develop a reputable identity for the sport and to foster and promote the development of the game in all of its aspects as a sport for women and girls.
Click here for the full WBCA release.
– Go Sioux –
