Deacs Notch 2023 USMC/AVCA Team Academic Award
7/13/2023 2:01:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Make it a fourth straight year for Wake Volleyball!
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Summer accolades have again rolled in for Wake Forest volleyball this year, as the Demon Deacons received the annual Team Academic Award from the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA), presented by the United States Marine Corps and announced on Thursday afternoon (July 13).
The award, initiated in the 1992–93 academic year, honors volleyball teams that maintain a year-long grade-point average of 3.3 on a 4.0 scale or 4.1 on a 5.0 scale.
The feat marked a fourth consecutive year and fifth overall time that has seen Wake Forest win the team award. The Demon Deacons recorded a 3.46 team grade point average for the 2022-23 school year.
"We are so proud of the team for their dedication in the classroom," said head coach Randi Smart. "Wake Forest has a very high standard in both athletics and academics, so this is not an easy feat. We are excited for what this group has done on and off the court."
Wake Forest set a new record of Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) All-Academic Team selections this past winter, placing 10 individuals. Rian Baker, Paige Crawford, Emma Farrell, Andrea Fuentes, Megan Merril, Olivia Murphy, Emmy Ogogor, Ashley Slater, Peyton Suess and Kalani Whillock all represented. Each of the roster's 16 players from 2022 also were named to the ACC Academic Honor Roll last week (July 7).
The Deacs joined nine other ACC member schools on the list.
About the AVCA
The AVCA, an educationally based nonprofit headquartered in Lexington, KY, is the largest and most diverse volleyball coaches' association in the world. With a broad mandate to develop the sport, the AVCA provides leadership, recognition, advocacy, and professional development opportunities to over 8,200 volleyball coaches. Members include college, high school, club, and youth coaches, and well as a wide variety of product and service providers. Further information is available at avca.org.
Wake Forest Volleyball in 2022
The 2022 fall campaign marked the first time since 2001 that the program produced back-to-back winning seasons. Smart paced Wake Forest to a 17-14 overall record – its best clip since 2010. Additionally, the Demon Deacons grabbed 10 victories on their home floor, the most since the 2014 campaign. The team went on to participate in the 2022 National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC) for its first postseason appearance since 1986 when the Deacs played in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Tournament before the event ceased in 2004.
As early as week two of the fall, Wake Forest found itself ranked within the Atlantic Coast Conference's (ACC) top five among all member institutions in digs-per-set, as a team. The Deacons finished fourth in the conference with a 14.02 digs-per-set average.
Wake Forest first-year libero Emma Farrell was named the 2022 ACC Freshman of the Year after leading the conference in a digs-per-set average (4.41). The Norcross, Georgia, native ultimately resulted as the first Deacon to attain such recognition since Christy Williams in 2002, along with being only the second, all-time Wake Forest player. Farrell and outside hitter Paige Crawford also were tabbed to the conference's 2022 All-Freshman Team, becoming the first pair in program history to secure All-Freshman selections since Caroline Rassenfoss and Caitlyn Della in 2016. Farrell and Crawford combined for a total of four ACC Freshman of the Week honors – the highest mark in the Randi Smart era.
