LEXINGTON, Ky. – For the fourth consecutive year the Mississippi College volleyball team has earned the United States Marine Corps (USMC) and American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Team Academic Award after the team's performance in the classroom during the 2020-21 academic year.
 
The Choctaws posted a team GPA of 3.52 in the classroom this season, which ties the programs best for the award. The 2019-20 unit also posted a 3.52 while the 2018-19 squad added a 3.44 and 2017-18 edition garnered a 3.46 GPA.
 
The award, which was initiated during the 1992-93 academic year, honors volleyball teams that maintain a year-long, grade-point average of 3.30 on a 4.0 scale or 4.10 on a 5.0 scale.
 
The Navy and Gold are one of 161 NCAA Division II programs honored with this award and only eight from the Gulf South Conference.
 
MC posted a 7-2 record during the season and advanced as the No. 2-seed in Group A in the Gulf South Conference Spring Championship Series. MC swept Lee University in the first round of the series before culminating the season against the University of Montevallo in the semifinals in Hoover, Ala., in four sets.
 
Mississippi College opens the 2021 season on Tuesday, Sept. 7 as it travels to Monticello, Ark., to face the University of Arkansas at Monticello. First serve is set for 6 p.m. The Choctaws open their home slate on Friday, Sept. 24 against Montevallo in GSC action. First serve is slated for 6 p.m.