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The Women's Basketball Coaches Association announces the Jackrabbits are #1:

Atlanta, Ga. -- The Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) announced its 2005-2006 Academic Top 25 Team Honor Roll for NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA and Junior College/Community College. The awards recognize teams throughout the nation that have the highest grade point averages (GPA) for the 2005-2006 season based upon nominations submitted by WBCA-member coaches.

"It is my pleasure to recognize each of these distinguished women's basketball programs that have gone above and beyond excellence on the court, and have extended it to the classroom," said WBCA Chief Executive Officer Beth Bass. "These 117 teams admirably strive to be successful all-around and we commend their efforts. Congratulations!"

Division	Institution	2005-06 Head Coach	GPA	Top 25 Range
NCAA I	South Dakota State University	Aaron Johnston	3.730	3.730-3.298
NCAA II	University of Nebraska - Kearney	Carol Russell	3.663	3.663-3.297
NCAA III	Colorado College	Kelly Mahlum	3.577	3.577-3.331
NAIA	Dana College	Brenda Mechels	3.585	3.585-2.991
JC/CC	Colby Community College	Tom Stephens	3.458	3.458-2.675*
*=top 17 range

Each of the top ranking institutions have appeared on the WBCA Academic Top 25 Honor Roll as least once in the past six years. The University of Nebraska - Kearney returns to the number one spot for the second time, with the first time in 2003. South Dakota State University finished in a close second last year and has taken the number one seed for the first time. Also finishing at the top spot for the first time are Colorado College, Dana College and Colby Community College. These "classy" teams combine for an average 3.602 GPA for the 2005-2006 season.

GPAs are calculated by dividing the total number of quality points earned by each student-athlete on an institution's roster in the given academic terms by the total number of hours earned by the team. The GPAs are rounded to the nearest thousandth of a point.

NCAA Division I
In his second season at the NCAA Division I level, South Dakota State's Aaron Johnston has already taken over the ranks to top this year's Academic Top 25. After finishing second in 2005, Johnston's team took it one step further to become the number one academic team in the nation not only for NCAA Division I, but they also carried the highest GPA at all levels. The Lady Jacks squad's success in the classroom carried over to the court, as they finished the season with 21 wins and an overall record of 21-7.

"We had a really dedicated team committed to doing both academics and athletics. Being in the top 15 of the WBCA Academic Top 25 is always a goal of ours," Johnston said. "Last year we finished second, so it was a goal to try to improve upon that. The team did a great job!"

The WBCA Academic Top 25 Team Honor Roll for NCAA Division I is as follows:

	School	2005-2006 Head Coach	Team GPA
1.	South Dakota State	Aaron Johnston	3.730
2.	Indiana State University	Jim Wiedie	3.612
3.	Eastern Washington University	Wendy Schuller	3.474
4.	Valparaiso University	Keith Freeman	3.468
5.	Montana State - Bozeman	Tricia Binford	3.459
6.	University of New Mexico	Don Flanagan	3.424
7.	Oakland University	Beckie Francis	3.402
8.	University of Northern Iowa	Tony DiCecco	3.399
9.	Northern Arizona University	Laurie Kelly	3.364
10.	Univ. of Wisconsin - Green Bay	Kevin Borseth	3.362
11.	DePaul University	Doug Bruno	3.361
12.	Canisius College	Terrence Zeh	3.344
13.	University of Denver	Pamela Tanner	3.343
T14.	Lehigh University	Susan Troyan	3.338
T14.	Liberty University	Carey Green	3.338
16.	University of Central Florida	Gail Striegler	3.335
17.	Texas A&M - Corpus Christi	Robert Robinson	3.330
18.	Dartmouth College	Christina Wielgus	3.323
19.	University of Oklahoma	Sherri Coale	3.315
20.	Saint Bonaventure University	Jim Crowley	3.307
21	Long Island University	Stephanie Gaitley	3.301
22.	Villanova University	Harry Perretta	3.300
23.	University of Florida	Carolyn Peck	3.299
T24.	Bradley University	Paula Buscher	3.298
T24.	Fairleigh Dickinson University	Sandy Gordon	3.298