Six Salukis earn spots on MVC Scholar-Athlete Team
05/16/2016 | 12:00:00 | Softball
ST. LOUIS - Six Southern Illinois softball players earned places on the 2016 Missouri Valley Conference Scholar Athlete Team, the league announced on Monday. Kelsey Gonzalez, Shaye Harre and Merri Anne Patterson earned first-team honors; while Savanna Dover, Sydney Jones and Jessa Thomas earned honorable mention honors.
SIU placed at least two student-athletes on the First Team for the 19th consecutive year. SIU's three first-team honorees this year led all Valley schools.
Kelsey Gonzalez graduated Summa Cum Laude on Saturday with a 3.97 GPA in marketing. She started all 52 games this year and 198 games in her career. She earned MVC Scholar-Athlete honors all three years she was eligible for the award. Shaye Harre holds a 3.88 GPA in animal sciences and is a two-time CoSIDA first-team Academic All-District honoree. Merri Anne Patterson also earned first-team MVC Scholar-Athlete honors for the second-straight year. She holds a 3.91 GPA in exercise science.
SIU also earned three honorable mention Scholar-Athlete team selections. Savanna Dover earned the honor in her first season eligible for the award. She holds a 3.409 GPA and also earned second-team All-MVC honors this season. Sydney Jones was also a second-team All-MVC pick and also earned Scholar-Athlete team honors in her first season eligible. She holds a 3.80 GPA in exercise science. Jessa Thomas earned her first career Scholar-Athlete team honor after starting 34 games at catcher this season. She holds a 3.88 GPA in social work.
In order to be eligible, student-athletes must have at 3.2 GPA or higher, be at least a sophomore in athletic and academic standing and meet certain playing requirements.
