POPLARVILLE – Five Pearl River Community College softball players have earned Academic Student-Athlete Awards from the National Junior College Athletic Association.
Breanna Herndon of Poplarville received the Superior Academic Achievement Award with a grade point average of 3.8 to 3.99.
Shannon Buehler of Bay St. Louis, Hannah Holloway of Petal, Hannah Herndon and Rachel Hickman, both of Poplarville, received Exemplary Academic Achievement Awards with grade point averages of 3.6 to 3.79.
Twenty-three PRCC student athletes were nominated for NJCAA academic recognition.
“The criteria for receiving the NJCAA Academic Award is a cumulative GPA of at least 3.60 and at least 45 hours earned,” athletic director Jason Francis said.
Nine athletes recorded perfect 4.0 GPAs for the spring semester. They are Larke Bickham of Poplarville, athletic training; Adam Smith of Pascagoula, baseball; Carter Hankins of Purvis, baseball and football; Gerrad McLaurin of Ocean Springs, Trevor Kroll of Gulfport and John Longo of Waveland, men’s soccer; Lyndsey Lee of Bay St. Louis, women’s soccer; Breanna and Hannah Herndon of Poplarville, softball.
“It is our goal as an athletic department to see each program earn at least a 3.0 GPA each semester,” Francis said. “We fell short in only two of the seven programs.”
Team GPAs for the 2014-15 year are as follows: Softball, 3.46; women’s soccer, 3.32; men’s soccer and baseball, 3.18; men’s basketball, 3.17; football, 2.85; and women’s basketball, 2.79.