Gallaudet University and St. Mary's College of Maryland were two of 450 teams honored by the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) with the AVCA Team Academic Award for the 2009-10 season as announced by AVCA Executive Director Kathy DeBoer Tuesday afternoon.

The AVCA Team Academic Award, which was initiated in the 1992-93 academic year, honors volleyball teams at the high school and college level that are successful in the classroom. 

Nominees include high school or college teams that have a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.30 (on a 4.00 scale) or 4.10 (on a 5.00 scale) during the full academic year (both semesters or all quarters), and include all varsity athletes who competed in volleyball with the institution for any portion of the academic year.

This year's recognition marks the seventh time that the Seahawks have received the AVCA Team Academic Award, including earning the award for six consecutive years from 1995 to 2000.