AUSTIN, Texas --- Four Tusculum University student-athletes have been named to the 2023 NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Academic All-District 3 first team as selected by the College Sports Communicators (formerly CoSIDA).
Earning CSC Academic All-District honors are Sophie Henry, Averie Price, Jami Tham and Alyssa Walker.
The 2023 Academic All-District® women's basketball teams recognize the nation's top student-athletes for their combined performances on the field and in the classroom. All four advance to the Academic All-America® ballot with the winners being announced next month.
District 3 is comprised of colleges and universities representing the South Atlantic Conference, Peach Belt Conference and Conference Carolinas. To be eligible, a student-athlete must have a cumulative grade point average of 3.50 or higher, must be at least a sophomore and played in 50 percent of their team's games.
Henry, a senior guard from Sevierville, Tennessee, has a cumulative GPA of 3.75 while majoring in biology / pre-medicine. She is a member of the SAC Commissioner's Honor Roll, Dean's List, Charles Oliver Gray Honors List at the Tusculum Athletic Director's Honor Roll. She is a two-time recipient of the Division II Athletic Directors Association (D2ADA) Academic Achievement Award.
She has played in 26 games with 25 starts as Tusculum point guard where she has recorded a team-high 140 assists and ranks second in the league and eighth nationally averaging 5.4 assists per game. Her +2.40 assist to turnover ratio is also second-best in the conference. She is also averaging 3.6 points and 2.6 rebounds per contest. In her 50 games at Tusculum, she has accounted for 215 assists and 78 steals.
Price, a senior guard from Lebanon, Virginia, has a sterling 3.97 GPA and is a biology major. She is a member of the Dean's List, President's List, SAC Commissioner's Honor Roll, Athletic Director's Honor Roll and the Charles Oliver Gray Honors List. She was named the Tusculum Academic Freshman of the Year in 2021 and was a recipient of the D2ADA Academic Achievement Award.
Price is averaging 1.3 points and 0.5 rebounds per game. She has played in 19 outings for the Pioneers this season. She is shooting 45 percent from the floor and 38 percent from three-point territory.
Tham, a graduate student from Arlington, Virginia, graduated with honors from Barton College where she finished with a 3.97 GPA. She has a perfect 4.00 GPA in her graduate studies at Tusculum. While at Barton, she was named the 2022 Conference Carolinas Scholar Athlete of the Year and was also the league's Elite 23 winner for women's basketball. She was also named a nominee for the prestigious NCAA Woman of the Year Award.
She has enjoyed an outstanding season at Tusculum where she is candidate for SAC Player of the Year laurels. She leads the conference in rebounding averaging 13.7 boards per game which is also the second-best average in NCAA Division II. She leads the nation with 24 double-doubles, which are a new TU and SAC single-season record and the 12th-most by a NCAA II player. She is also averaging a team-best 17.3 points per game (4th in SAC).
Tham was a three-time All-Conference Carolinas honoree at Barton and has played in 127 career games with 100 starts. She has recorded over 1,600 points and 1,000 rebounds in a career and her 57 career double-doubles are the second-most by a NCAA II active player.
Walker, a senior forward from Maryville, Tennessee, has a 3.55 GPA and is majoring in sports science. She was named to the SAC Commissioner's last season and was twice tabbed to the Southern Conference Honor Roll while at Western Carolina University. In 2021, she was named to the SoCON All-Academic Team. She is also a member of the Dean's List, Athletic Director's Honor Roll and the Charles Oliver Gray Honors List.
Walker has started in 26 games and is averaging 6.7 points and 3.2 rebounds per game. She is shooting 45.3 percent from the field and 72.4 percent from the free throw line. She has scored in double figures nine times this season.
The Pioneers are 20-7 overall this season and 11-6 in conference which currently has them in second place in the SAC Mountain Division. TU has clinched the No. 2 seed in the division and will host a quarterfinal game next Wednesday at Pioneer Arena. The Pioneers will close out the regular season on Saturday when the travel to No. 20 Catawba for a 2 p.m. contest in Salisbury, North Carolina.
The CSC Academic All-America® program separately recognizes football honorees in four divisions — NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III and NAIA. Academic All-District® honorees advance to the CSC Academic All-America® ballot. First and second team Academic All-America® honorees will be announced in December.
The Division II and III CSC Academic All-America® programs are partially financially supported by the NCAA Division II and III national governance structures to assist CSC with handling the awards fulfillment aspects for the 2022-2023 Divisions II and III Academic All-America® programs.
