(July 18, 2024) Charlotte, North Carolina – The National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) has announced the 2023-24 NJCAA All-Academic honorees and All-Academic Teams. Prior to this announcement, UA Rich Mountain has had 85 All-Academic honorees and 10 All-Academic Teams in the previous five years.
The Bucks will now add 20 Academic All-Americans to the list in 2023-24. To qualify, a student-athlete must complete 12 hours per semester with a cumulative GPA of a 3.60 or higher. All-Academic honorees are broken into three teams:
First Team – 4.0 GPA
- Mackenzie Dellinger (North Little Rock, AR) – Women's Soccer
- Reagan Tucker (Waxahachie, TX) – Softball
- Riley Lowery (Hughes Springs, TX) - Softball
- Lilli Williams (Granbury, TX) - Softball
- Bri Crowley (Springdale, AR) - Softball
- Olivia Nickson (Bentonville, AR) - Softball
Second Team – 3.80 - 3.99 GPA
- Anja von Allmen (Switzerland) - Women's Soccer
- Lucas Bruni Cardosa (Brazil) - Men's Soccer***
- Arthur Pereire (Brazil) - Men's Soccer
- Layla Baker (Doyline, LA) - Softball
- Cody Hayes (Corsicana, TX) - Baseball
- Dylan Garton (Texarkana, TX) - Baseball
*** Lucas Bruni Cardosa was named UA Rich Mountain's Academic All-Star for the 2023-24 academic year.
Third Team – 3.60 - 3.79 GPA
- Carla Todd (England) - Women's Soccer
- Jasmin Nielsen (Denmark) - Women's Soccer
- Maegan Hill (Benton, AR) - Women's Soccer
- Madison Heller (Hughes Springs, AR) - Softball
- Emma Reynolds (Cayuga, TX) - Softball
- Orlandis Williamson (Milan, TN) - Baseball
- Trace Watkins (Sheridan, AR) - Baseball
- Luke Crumpler (Bentonville, AR) – Baseball
Click here for a full list of NJCAA awardees >>> https://d2o2figo6ddd0g.cloudfront.net/k/8/i2bevogxzlm137/2023-24_NJCAA_Individual_All-Academic_Awards_-_Full_List_-_07-16-24.pdf.
UARM also had two teams named as All-Academic Teams. To be selected, a team must finish with a 3.0 GPA or higher. Women's Soccer earned their third consecutive honor, while Softball earned their fourth consecutive academic award.
- Women's Soccer – 3.21 GPA
- Softball – 3.33 GPA
For the 2023-24 academic year, the Bucks had 46 student-athlete finish the year with a 3.0 GPA or higher.
"Academics come first. We always stress that 'student' comes before being an 'athlete.' Before we ever run a course, kick or throw a ball, or win a game, our first goal is for our students-athletes to walk across the stage at the end of their career at UARM and receive their diploma. There's also a direct correlation with success in the classroom leading to success in their respective sport," stated Athletic Director Jerod McCormick.
The athletic department is now turning their attention to the seventh year of Bucks Athletics that begins in August with Cross Country and Soccer.
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