Feb. 21, 2005

St. Louis, Mo. - The National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) announced today that the Saint Louis University field hockey team is a Division I National Academic Team Award recipient. The program recognizes those institutions that achieved a team GPA of 3.0 or higher during the first semester of the 2004-05 academic year. The Billikens' fall team GPA was 3.325. Twelve of the team's 17 members qualified.

"I am proud of this team's academic achievements," said head coach Maria Whitehead. "We're pleased that its success in the classroom is recognized by the Association."

"I am extremely proud of their discipline and dedication in the classroom," said Amber Moyer, director of academic services. "They deserve this award for their commitment. The 2004 NFHCA Division I Academic Team Award illustrates that our field hockey team lives the University mission."

Saint Louis is a member of the eight-team NorPac conference. Three other NorPac teams, Stanford, Appalachian State and Southwest Missouri State, also earned the award.

A total of 52 Division I institutions earned the award with LaSalle (3.50), Stanford (3.42), Bucknell (3.41), Georgetown (3.39) and Siena (3.38) as the top five.