20 SAU Athletic teams earn NAIA Scholar Team Award

The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) has announced that more than 2,000 teams from across the nation have earned the distinction of Scholar Team for the 2019-20 academic year, including 20 of Spring Arbor University’s athletic programs.

The women’s golf team led all SAU programs with an impressive 3.77 grade point average (GPA) while the softball team was close behind with a 3.74.

Eight other Spring Arbor squads boasted a GPA of 3.5 or higher, including volleyball (3.69), women’s soccer (3.65), men’s tennis (3.57), women’s basketball (3.57), women’s tennis (3.55), women’s indoor track & field (3.52), women’s outdoor track & field (3.51) and competitive dance (3.50).

For a team to be considered for the NAIA Scholar Team Award, it must have a minimum 3.0 GPA (on a 4.0 scale) as defined by the institution. The team GPA includes all eligible varsity student athletes.

In addition to the Scholar Team Awards, a total of 137 Spring Arbor student athletes were honored as NAIA Scholar-Athletes this past year for being a sophomore or above academically with a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or better.