KANSAS CITY, Mo. - For the second year in a row, the Northwest women's soccer program is the recipient of the United Soccer Coaches College Women's Team Academic Award, the organization announced on Thursday morning.

As one of numerous colleges and universities across the nation to receive the honor, Northwest earned the honor by improving the program's GPA from 3.49 to a 3.66 cumulative average. To qualify for the award, teams must present a minimum GPA of 3.0 to be eligible.

Earlier in the offseason, the Lady Rangers also received more academic praise, earning Academic Team of the Year accolades from both the MACCC and NJCAA.

Northwest was one of only three MACCC programs to receive the United Soccer Coaches honor, joining East Central and Mississippi Gulf Coast. This is the fifth time in program history that the Lady Rangers have earned an academic award from the USC.

In 2021, the Lady Rangers posted a 15-3-1 overall record and advanced to the MACCC/Region 23 Semifinals. The program was a mainstay in both the NJCAA Division II and United Soccer Coaches national rankings.

Following three exhibition matches against Delta State, Christian Brothers and Harding, Northwest will officially open up the 2022 campaign on Saturday, August 27 against National Park College.