SPEARFISH, S.D. – The Black Hills State University Athletic Department continued to see a jump in the classroom success of their student-athletes as they improved their GPA for the third consecutive semester and boasted their best mark since the fall of 2022, turning in a cumulative grade point average of 3.392 for the 2025 spring term. Another major accomplishment for the Yellow Jackets saw all 14 programs record a GPA of 3.0 or higher, and seven above a 3.5. Of the 441 student-athletes, 123 secured a perfect 4.0 GPA for the semester, while 259 where above a 3.5.
 
Leading the way for the athletic department during the spring semester with a team GPA of 3.879 was women's triathlon. Also, among the seven teams to sit above a 3.5 was women's basketball (3.865), softball (3.660), volleyball (3.571), women's cross country (3.570), women's golf (3.541), and women's track & field (3.534). Rounding out the department and all above a 3.0 for the semester was women's soccer (3.459), men's basketball (3.445), women's rodeo (3.417), men's rodeo (3.373), men's cross country (3.267), men's track & field (3.213), and football (3.072).
 
Five teams saw ten or more student-athletes attain a perfect 4.0 GPA during the spring semester, with both the women's track & field and football programs seeing 14 individuals reach the mark. The women's cross country program added 11 4.0 student-athletes, and both the women's rodeo and men's track & field program had ten apiece. Rounding out the breakdown was softball with eight, women's basketball with seven, volleyball with six, women's soccer with five, women's triathlon with four, men's basketball with four, men's cross country with four, men's rodeo with one, and women's golf with one. Three programs had more than 50 percent of their roster record a 4.0, which included women's cross country (55%), women's basketball (54%), and women's rodeo (53%).
 
Four teams saw 20 or more student-athlete post a 3.5 GPA or better during the spring semester, highlighted by a department-best 36 for the football program. Joining them was women's track & field with 29, women's soccer with 21, and men's track & field with 20. An additional five teams saw double digit athletes record the GPA mark, with women's cross country with 16, women's rodeo with 14, softball with 14, women's basketball with 13, and volleyball with 12. Rounding out the breakdown was women's triathlon with nine, men's basketball with nine, men's cross country with nine, women's golf with five, and men's rodeo with three. Both the women's basketball and women's triathlon programs had 100 percent of their roster reach the benchmark, while an additional eight teams saw at least 50 percent of their student-athletes do so, including women's cross country (80%), volleyball (75%), women's track & field (74%), women's rodeo (74%), women's soccer (70%), softball (64%), men's rodeo (60%), women's golf (56%), and men's basketball (50%).
 
For the 2024-25 academic year, the Black Hills State Athletic Department notched a 3.366 GPA, which included eight teams boasting a 3.5 or better. The program leading the way with the top GPA of the year was women's triathlon (3.896). Joining them as the eight teams to notch a 3.5 or better was women's basketball (3.833), softball (3.719), men's rodeo (3.595), women's cross country (3.587), women's indoor track & field (3.566), volleyball (3.539), women's soccer (3.536), and women's outdoor track & field (3.534).