A year after achieving record gains, the University of Minnesota earned solid scores on its latest Academic Progress Report, which were released to the Star Tribune per a data request Monday.

The school's athletic department earned a 976.8 single-year APR in 2009-10 -- one of the NCAA's measuring sticks for an institution's academic prowess -- a few points short of last year's 979.9 mark, a record for the university. The school equaled last year's accomplishment with 21 of 25 teams topping 965, considered a "high performing" score, during the 2009-10 academic year. All 25 teams posted multiyear marks above 925 (2006-07 through 2009-10), the limit to avoid NCAA penalties.

But Gophers men's basketball dropped to 863 in 2009-10 after making a significant jump a year ago. The decline from 981 in 2008-09 (960 multiyear) stems from multiple departures in 2009-10. Next year also could present problems for the program's APR with two more players leaving last season.

"You'd like to think that you try to find the reasons young people leave and we do exit interviews with those that do and try to determine it," athletic director Joel Maturi said. "It varies."

The men's basketball program scored 955 on its multiyear APR in the seventh edition of the report, so it won't lose any scholarships.

The NCAA penalizes programs when they register multiyear marks below 925 and an ineligible athlete transfers, also known as an 0-for-2.

Baseball, men's gymnastics, men's tennis, women's cross-country, women's basketball, women's gymnastics, soccer, women's swimming and women's golf all earned perfect scores of 1,000 in 2009-10. One squad, soccer, tallied 1,000 in the multiyear APR.

"Women's soccer is the poster child," Maturi said.

Football, two years removed from scholarship reductions prompted by a low APR, earned a 934 multiyear APR and a 925 score for the 2009-10 academic year.

Maturi said the team had a good second semester but also said departures could drop next year's scores.