SEATTLE (Aug. 2) ­ Completing a sweep of the top two awards in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, Seattle Pacific University earned its third straight Academic All-Sports title for the 2005-06 season.

The Falcons, who earlier won their first GNAC All-Sports championship, posted the best team grade point averages in five different sports. SPU also won the men's academic title for the fifth year in a row and took the women's academic title for the first time.

Seattle Pacific posted the conference's top team GPA in men's soccer, men's basketball, volleyball, women's basketball and women's track and field, finishing with a total of 144 points to outdistance runner-up Saint Martin's with 114.

SPU won the men's title with 56 points, six ahead of Northwest Nazarene. It outscored Seattle University 88-76 to win the women's title.

"What an incredible tribute and affirmation of our athletes, our coaches and the leadership of our athletic program (in winning both the all-sports and academic all-sports titles in the same year)," said Dr. Philip W. Eaton, SPU president.

"I can't imagine a better model: highly competitive athletics combined and aligned with a serious commitment to academic achievement," Eaton said. "At Seattle Pacific our mission calls us to graduate people of competence and character and these awards demonstrate we are on the right track."

"The discipline to study and the discipline to practice have been trademarks of Falcon teams," SPU athletic director Tom Box added. "Our coaches deserve credit for recruiting good students. SPU's admission standards set the bar high, but it translates into exceptional student-athletes. Our faculty, in turn, create a learning environment where students excel in the classroom. It was a very special year."

The Falcons finished 14th in the final Directors' Cup standings for NCAA Division II and two athletes were honored with NCAA Postgraduate Scholarships.

The Academic all-sports standings are based on the cumulative grade point averages of all the athletes on the official team rosters. Seven different schools won individual sport academic titles, led by Seattle Pacific with five and Alaska Fairbanks with two.

Three of the academic team winners also either won or shared the conference title in their respective sports. Seattle Pacific's men's basketball team and women's track and field titles won titles outright, while SPU's volleyball team shared the conference title with Central Washington.

Individual academic sport winners included:

Men:

• Football ­ Western Oregon 2.70.
• Cross Country ­ Alaska Fairbanks 3.47.
• Soccer ­ Seattle Pacific 3.21.
• Basketball ­ Seattle Pacific 3.09.
• Baseball ­ Saint Martin's 3.13.
• Track-and-Field ­ Alaska Anchorage 3.27.

Women:

• Volleyball ­ Seattle Pacific 3.31.
• Cross Country ­ Alaska Fairbanks 3.61.
• Soccer ­ Seattle University 3.44.
• Basketball ­ Seattle Pacific 3.44.
• Softball ­ Central Washington 3.16.
• Track and Field ­ Seattle Pacific 3.55