Toledo has been recognized for having a Top 25 team grade-point average in the nation, according to a release by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association. The Rockets posted a 3.443 overall GPA during the 2014-15 academic year to rank No. 18 among Division I programs.
“I’m very proud of our team and its commitment to excelling both on the court and off,” Toledo Head Coach Tricia Cullop said.
UT is one of three Mid-American Conference schools to earn the prestigious team award, along with Bowling Green and Northern Illinois. Under Cullop’s tutelage, the Rockets posted a team GPA above 3.0 in 13 of 14 semesters.
The Midnight Blue and Gold is receiving the award for the first time under Cullop and fifth time in program history. Toledo finished fifth nationally in 1996-97 (3.39 GPA), tied for eighth in 1998-99 (3.34), third in 1999-2000 (3.41), and most recently second in 2001-02 (3.47).
The Women’s Basketball Coaches Association Academic Top 25 presented by AT&T annually recognizes NCAA Division I, II and III; the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics; and junior/community college women’s basketball teams across the nation that carry the highest combined grade-point average inclusive of all student-athletes on their rosters for the entire season. The 2014-15 season is the 20th in which the association has compiled the honor rolls.
A team’s GPA is calculated by dividing the total number of quality points earned by the total number of hours attempted by all team members in the academic terms (semesters or quarters) that the season spans. Weighted grades are converted to a 4.0 scale. The GPAs are rounded to the nearest thousandth of a point. Teams are nominated for the honor by a head coach who is a member of the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association. A team must have a 3.000 or better GPA to be nominated.
Toledo posted a 19-14 overall record and a 10-8 MAC ledger in 2014-15. The Rockets also made their 10th overall appearance in the Postseason WNIT in 2015 and fifth in the last seven years with Cullop at the helm.
Academically, senior Inma Zanoguera, junior Ana Capotosto and junior Brenae Harris collected academic all-league recognition. Zanoguera became only the fifth player in school history to earn academic all-conference accolades on three occasions, joining Dana Drew (1990-95), Angela Drake (1993-97), Kim Knuth (1995-99) and Naama Shafir (2008-11, 2013).
