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JCCC volleyball earns AVCA Team Academic Award

The photo depicts a group of volleyball players in a team huddle. They’re wearing coordinated uniforms—long-sleeved jerseys and shorts—with visible jersey numbers like 4, 6, and 7. The players have their arms around each other, indicating a moment of unity or strategizing before or during a game. The setting is an indoor sports facility, with blue bleachers visible in the background.
Posted: Jul 24, 2026

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. – The Johnson County Community College volleyball team earned the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Team Academic Award, as announced by the organization this week. 

The Cavaliers join 1,431 other collegiate and high school volleyball programs across the country as recipients of the honor. To earn the Team Academic Award, the team must maintain a 3.3 grade point average. The 2025-26 JCCC volleyball team posted a 3.61 GPA.

Johnson County was one of 53 two-year college programs to earn the award

Head coach Jennifer Ei enters her 19th season at head volleyball coach at Johnson County. Through 18 seasons as Johnson County Community College head volleyball coach, Jennifer Ei compiled an impressive record of 511-149 (.774 winning percentage) and has gained a reputation of producing perennial top-ranked teams in the NJCAA.  Her 511 wins currently rank first among active conference coaches, fifth among all-time conference coaches and are second most all-time in team history.

Ei has led the Lady Cavaliers to national tournament appearances in 14 of her 18 seasons, with a national championship in 2020-21, runner-up finishes in 2008, 2010 and 2024, and third place finishes in 2013, 2018, 2021 and 2023. Her 14 tournament appearances are the most in Kansas Jayhawk Conference history passing Barton Community College legendary coach Ray Bechard. Also in those 18 seasons, Ei has had her teams appear in 167 of 176 NJCAA Coaches Polls (95%), including 113times in the top five, and 17 weeks at No. 1, including seven weeks in 2022 and four weeks in 2023. Her teams have also finished in the top five in nine of the 17 NJCAA season ending polls. 

Ei has also mentored 22 NJCAA All-America performers, including 13 first-team selections, one NJCAA National Player of the Year, eight AVCA All-Americans, four volleyballmag.com All-Americans, 17 NJCAA All-Tournament picks including one MVP, 67 All-Region/District selections, and 73 All-East Jayhawk Conference selections, including two conference MVP awards, two Defensive Players of the Year and one Freshman of the Year. 

Off the court her student-athletes have consistently been recognized for their academic achievements, as 83 percent of her players (192-of-230) achieved a grade point average of 3.0 or better during the fall semester in each of her 18 seasons.  Additionally, 74 of her players have gone on to earn NJCAA Student-Athlete Academic award honors accumulating a grade point above a 3.6, including 24 earning a 4.0 GPA. Three of her athletes have been selected Academic All-America® College Division At-Large as named by College Sports Communicators (formerly CoSIDA) and six student-athletes earned CSC Academic All-District® College Division At-Large.

The Cavaliers are set to begin the 2026 season with an exhibition on August 14 against MidAmerica Nazarene University. They open the regular season Thursday, August 20 at the Season Opening Tournament in Rockford, Ill.