OMAHA, Neb. - The University of Nebraska Omaha athletic department has achieved a Summit League-best five NCAA Public Recognition Awards, the league office announced on Wednesday.

An all-time high 22 Summit League teams were bestowed with the NCAA Public Recognition Award, an honor given to teams whose recent multi-year Academic Progress Rates (APR) are among the top 10 percent in each sport. This season's awards are based on 2012-13 figures.

The Maverick teams that were honored were women's cross country, women's golf, women's tennis, women's indoor track & field and women's outdoor track & field.

The APR provides a real-time look at a team's academic success each semester by tracking the academic progress of each student-athlete on scholarship. The APR accounts for eligibility, retention and graduation and provides a measure of each team's academic performance.

A total of 1,049 NCAA Division I teams earned Public Recognition Awards this year for high achievement, including 631 women's teams and 418 men's or mixed squads. Last year, 976 teams were recognized.

NCAA Public Recognition Awards
Omaha (5): Women's Cross Country, Women's Golf, Women's Tennis, Women's Indoor Track & Field, Women's Outdoor Track & Field

North Dakota State (4): Baseball, Men's Cross Country, Women's Cross Country, Women's Golf

IUPUI (3): Men's Tennis, Men's Outdoor Track & Field, Women's Soccer

South Dakota State (3): Women's Basketball, Men's Tennis, Women's Tennis

Western Illinois (3): Women's Cross Country, Women's Tennis, Volleyball

Fort Wayne (1): Women's Golf

South Dakota (1): Men's Golf

*Eastern Illinois (1): Men's Swimming

**Oakland (1): Women's Basketball

* denotes affiliate league member
** denotes former league member (APR figures based on years as league member)