Bruin softball honored by NFCA for academic achievement

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- The National Fastpitch Coaches Association announced, today, the National Rankings for the NFCA's Top 10 Academic Team rankings for the 2015-16 school year. Individually 5,152 softball players earned Easton/NFCA Scholar-Athlete honors.

Bellevue was one of 10 NAIA institutions recognized for their achievements in the classroom after posting a GPA of 3.562 as a team. The award comes on the heels of Bellevue having 13 student-athletes recognized as North Star Athletic Association Scholar-Athletes.

BU had nine individuals named Easton/NFCA Scholar-Athletes. Earning individual honors were juniors Sydney Robertson, Kaitlyn Goney, and Courtney Schendt; sophomores Alex Tooley and Sayde Woten; and freshmen Kaite Franzen, Kayla Lehigh, Kayla Young, and Emily Miller.

The rankings and honors recognize the academic prowess of softball teams across seven membership divisions. NCAA Division I, with 1,240 honorees, had the most student-athletes with a 3.5 grade-point average or higher, while 1,124 in Division III earned recognition, followed by 963 Division II student-athletes. High School weighted and High School unweighted posted 618 and 512 honorees apiece. NAIA amassed 384 recipients and Junior College totaled 311.

NAIA Easton Top-10 Academic Team Honors

1. Siena Heights – 3.720
2. William Woods – 3.713
3. William Carey – 3.639
4. Spring Arbor – 3.598
5. Bellevue – 3.562
6. Arizona Christian – 3.510
7. Robert Morris (Ill.) – 3.460
8. Peru State – 3.458
9. Lourdes – 3.451
10. Bethel – 3.442