ASC Announces Winter/Spring Distinguished Scholar Athletes

6/14/2012 10:44:38 AM

RICHARDSON, Texas –– Texas-Dallas’ Chris Barnes and Rachel Houston, Ozarks’ April Young, Texas Lutheran’s Daniel Yancelson and Ashley Meadows, Concordia Texas’ Zach Collier and Kayla Burch, East Texas Baptist’s Ashton Brey, Texas-Tyler’s Kevin Wright, and Hardin-Simmons’ Brendon Kelso have all earned the title of Distinguished Scholar-Athlete in their respective American Southwest Conference 2011-12 winter/spring sport, the conference office announced on Thursday (June 13).

Overall, 101 student-athletes from ASC men’s basketball, women’s basketball, baseball, men’s golf, women’s golf, softball, men’s tennis, women’s tennis, men’s track and field and women’s track and field were named to the Distinguished Scholar-Athlete Team.

The honor, in its fifth academic year, recognizes student-athletes that achieve a higher level of academic achievement (a 3.20 grade-point average or better) while competing as a starter or important reserve on their team. From that list – limited to one nominee per school in each ASC championship sport – the sports information directors from the conference’s 16 member institutions vote on a Distinguished Scholar-Athlete from each sport.

Barnes (San Antonio, Texas), a senior basketball player at Texas-Dallas who is majoring in accounting with a 3.61 GPA, averaged 15.6 points and 6.0 rebounds per game in his final season. He became the Comets' all-time leading scorer after his four-year career. He was a two-time ASC All-Conference performance and twice named the ASC East Player of the Year. Barnes also collected all-region honors from D3hoops.com, all-district honors from the NABC during this season and was a three-time ASC Academic All-Conference pick and twice named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District team during his career.

Young (Deer, Ark), a senior basketball player at Ozarks who is majoring in biology with a 3.99 GPA, capped an impressive academic and athletic career by earning Capital One Academic All-America Second Team honors this season, only the fourth Ozarks’ student-athlete to receive the national award. Young was nearly perfect in her academic pursuits as she maintained a perfect 4.0 grade point average in seven of her eight semesters of college. Young earned the ASC Distinguished Scholar-Athlete as well All-Conference honors last season. She earned ASC Player of the Week honors once this season and was named to the All-Conference Second Team. She was named to the Capital One Academic All-District Team her junior and senior season and was voted to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District Team her sophomore season. Young owns the school record with 192 career three-pointers and finished as one of the top scorers in program history with 1,161 points.

Yancelson (Mexico City, Mexico), a senior baseball player at Texas Lutheran who is majoring in communications with a 3.61 GPA, was named TLU's Male Sportsmanship Award Winner. Yancelson was a First Team All-ASC West Division shortstop in 2012 and a Second Team All-ASC West Division shortstop in 2011. A two-year starter at shortstop and a four-year letterman, Yancelson played on two ASC West Division Championship squads. He was a member of four teams that advanced to the ASC Championship Tournament Series. A three-time ASC Academic All-Conference selection, Yancelson worked in the TLU Office of Sports Information as a play-by-play voice during the women's volleyball, women's basketball, and men's basketball seasons. He was a two-time nominee for CoSIDA Academic All-America/All-District honors.

Collier (Mansfield, Texas), a sophomore golfer at Concordia Texas who is majoring in business with a 3.52 GPA, is the team representative on the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and had the fourth-best season scoring average for a squad which placed sixth at the 2012 American Southwest Conference Championships. He improved his scoring average by more than three strokes since his freshman year and finished as high as tied for sixth at the tourney in 2011-12. Collier also helped Concordia tie for second, its highest tournament finish ever, at the West Region Invitational on Apr. 10, 2012.

Burch (Mansfield, Texas), a junior golfer at Concordia Texas who is majoring in accounting with a perfect 4.0 GPA, is a two-year letter-winner and was a team representative on the school’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. She has been elected to serve as the SAAC Treasurer for the 2012-13 academic year. Burch helped Concordia have a record-breaking season for the second straight year, beginning on Sept. 13, 2011 when she combined with three of her teammates to record the lowest team score in school history by 31 strokes at its first tournament. She recorded the lowest team score among the four student-athletes at that event. Burch established program-best marks for lowest tournament score (158) and lowest tournament score vs. par (158, +14) this past year. CTX has made its only two ASC Championship appearances with Burch on the roster, which included a record-breaking fourth-place finish in 2012.

Brey (Lindale, Texas), a senior softball player at East Texas Baptist who is majoring in mass communications with a perfect 4.0 GPA, is a two-time CoSIDA/Capital One Academic All-American, including this season. She was a two-time member of the All-ASC team and NFCA All-West Region team. Brey won ETBU’s Academic Excellence Award for Athletics this past spring and was named 2011-2012 ETBU “Top Tiger.” She hit .330 with 25 stolen bases.

Wright (College Station, Texas), a senior tennis player at Texas-Tyler who is majoring in finance with a 3.8 GPA, wrapped up his accomplished career as a Patriot by helping lead the Patriots to the ASC title, playing at No. 3 singles and No. 2 doubles. Wright was named Wilson/ITA West Region Arthur Ashe Leadership & Sportsmanship honoree. Wright was selected as the region's Arthur Ashe Leadership & Sportsmanship honoree. He was also an academic All-Conference honoree.

Houston (Houston, Texas), a junior tennis player at Texas-Dallas who is majoring in biology with a 3.52 GPA, posted a near-perfect 15-1 record at No. 1 singles for the Comets. She added an 11-6 mark in doubles, mostly at No. 1. Houston earned second team All-ASC honors at No. 1 singles and No. 1 doubles. She was named CoSIDA Academic All-District in the At-Large category. Houston also sparked the Comets the ASC title match for the first time in program history.

Kelso (Jacksboro, Texas), a senior track and field athlete at Hardin-Simmons who is majoring in sports management with a 3.86 GPA, placed in four events at the American Southwest Conference Championships. He was the only member of the original HSU track team in 2009 to complete four seasons.

Meadows (Universal City, Texas), a sophomore track and field athlete at Texas Lutheran who is majoring in biology with a perfect 4.0 GPA, is a two-year letter-winner for and a member of TLU’s ASC Championship squads in 2011 and 2012. At the ASC Championships, Meadows was 7th in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, 10th in the 1,500, and 12th in the 800. She also lettered in women’s cross country in 2011-12. She was a Second Team All-Conference selection and led team to runner-up team finish with individual finish of ninth. Meadow’s was TLU's Distinguished Scholar-Athlete of the Year nominee for women's cross country. She is a two-time ASC Academic All-Conference selection.

All honorees were also named to the Winter/Spring 2011-12 ASC Academic All-Conference Team.

ASC WINTER/SPRING 2011-12 DISTINGUISHED SCHOLAR-ATHLETE TEAMS
(+Sport’s Distinguished Scholar-Athlete)

MEN’S BASKETBAL

Name	School	Cl.	Major	Hometown
+Chris Barnes	Texas Dallas	Sr.	Accounting/MBA	San Antonio, Texas
Jim Walter	Hardin-Simmons	So.	Pre-Med	Azle, Texas
Brandon Irwin	Howard Payne	Sr.	Business Admin.	Thorndale, Texas
Jake Miller	LeTourneau	So.	Kinesiology	Mont Belvieu, Texas
Greg Wiernas	Mary Hardin-Baylor	Sr.	Accounting	Arlington, Texas
Colby Woolverton	Ozarks	Sr.	Physical Education	Sherwood, Ark.
Manny Longoria	Schreiner	Jr.	Accounting	El Paso, Texas
Juston Weldon	Sul Ross State	Jr.	History	Wimberley, Texas
Dallas Bean	Texas-Tyler	Sr.	Kinesiology	Orange, Texas
Jarell English	Texas Lutheran	Sr.	Education	Keller, Texas

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Name	School	Cl.	Major	Hometown
+April Young	Ozarks	Sr.	Biology	Deer, Ark.
Lashanda Luckey	Concordia Texas	Sr.	Behavioral Science	Garland, Texas
Holly Phelps	East Texas Baptist	Jr.	Psychology	Tyler, Texas
Kara Looten	Hardin-Simmons	Sr.	Biology	Panhandle, Texas
Abby Parmelly	Howard Payne	Jr.	Political Science	Abilene, Texas
La’Queda Davis	LeTourneau	Sr.	MBA	Houston, Texas
Roslyn Wilmer	Louisiana College	Sr.	Education	Marksville, La.
M.J. Vickers	McMurry	Jr.	Mathematics	Albany, Texas
Brittany Zamora	Mary Hardin-Baylor	Sr.	Ex. & Sport Science	Cedar Park, Texas
Valeri Stewart	Mississippi College	Jr.	Social Work	Starkville, Miss.
Marilie Duran	Schreiner	Jr.	Exercise Science	Charlotte, Texas
Krista Ford	Sul Ross State	Jr.	History	Lubbock, Texas
Brittany Houston	Texas Dallas	Sr.	Child Development	Houston, Texas
Lindsey Hausmann	Texas-Tyler	Sr.	Math	Lake Travis, Texas
Kimberly Hagan	Texas Lutheran	Sr.	Kinesiology	Houston, Texas

BASEBALL

Name	School	Cl.	Major	Hometown
+Daniel Yancelson	Texas Lutheran	Sr.	Communications	Mexico City, Mexico
Jeff Schaffert	Centenary	Sr.	Neuroscience	Midland, Mich.
Collin Janssen	Concordia Texas	Sr.	Kinesiology	Bryan, Texas
Lance Anding	East Texas Baptist	So.	History	Bullard, Texas
Andrew Rehling	Hardin-Simmons	Sr.	Marketing	Coppell, Texas
Houston Holmes	Howard Payne	Jr.	Ex. and Sport Science	Brownwood, Texas
Nate Tomaszewski	LeTourneau	Sr.	Marketing	Dove Canyon, Calif.
Mike Doughty	Louisiana College	Jr.	Business	Crowley, La.
Matt Thompson	McMurry	Sr.	Finance	Southlake, Texas
Braden Embry	Mary Hardin-Baylor	Sr.	Accounting	Reisel, Texas
Pate Shackelford	Mississippi College	Jr.	Biology	North Carrollton, Miss.
Michael Prusator	Ozarks	Sr.	Chemistry	Ochelata, Okla.
Andy Silcox	Sul Ross State	Sr.	Interdisciplinary Studies	Glendale, Ariz.
Max Willard	Texas Dallas	Sr.	Accounting	Garland, Texas
Aaron McCain	Texas-Tyler	Sr.	Nursing	Royse City, Texas

MEN’S GOLF

Name	School	Cl.	Major	Hometown
+Zach Collier	Concordia Texas	So.	Business	Mansfield, Texas
Hayden Adams	LeTourneau	Jr.	Engineering	Newark, Texas
Mike McQuaid	Mary Hardin-Baylor	Sr.	Pre-Physical Therapy	Duncanville, Texas
Griffin Burk	Mississippi College	Sr.	Chemistry	Philadelphia, Miss.
Andy Bell	Schreiner	Jr.	Political Science	Houston, Texas
Austin Quinten	Texas-Tyler	Sr.	Political Science	Sand Springs, Okla.
Chris Hyten	Texas Lutheran	Sr.	Physics / Math	Arlington, Va.

WOMEN’S GOLF

Name	School	Cl.	Major	Hometown
+Kayla Burch	Concordia Texas	Jr.	Accounting	Mansfield, Texas
Justine Kemp	Centenary	Jr.	Neuroscience	Colo. Springs, Colo.
Candice Nishimura	LeTourneau	Jr.	Design Technology	San Mateo, Calif.
Kelly Green	McMurry	Jr.	Biology	San Antonio, Texas
Allison Holly	Mary Hardin-Baylor	So.	Ex. & Sport Science	Crystal Lake, Ill.
Sarah Stillwell	Schreiner	Sr.	Exercise Science	Castroville, Texas
Zach Norton	Texas Dallas	Sr.	Business Admin.	Arlington, Texas
Katie Walser	Texas Dallas	Jr.	History	Downers Grove, Ill.
Callie Rice	Texas-Tyler	Sr.	Education	Nome, Texas

SOFTBALL

Name	School	Cl.	Major	Hometown
+Ashton Brey	East Texas Baptist	Sr.	Mass Communication	Lindale, Texas
Lauren Vansickle	Concordia Texas	Sr.	Finance	Victoria, Texas
Kelsey Evans	Hardin-Simmons	Sr.	Pre-Physical Therapy	Sulphur Springs, Texas
Katie Poerner	Howard Payne	Jr.	Math/Education	Comfort, Texas
Ashley McPhail	LeTourneau	Sr.	International Bus.	Katy, Texas
Devan Greene	Louisiana College	Sr.	Biology	Kaplan, La.
Hannah White	Mary Hardin-Baylor	Jr.	Psychology	Robinson, Texas
Tiffany Fuller	Mississippi College	Sr.	Elem. Education	Vicksburg, Miss.
Vanessa Vazquez	Schreiner	Sr.	Elementary Education	Copperas Cove, Texas
Stephanie Harris	Texas Dallas	Jr.	Comm. Disorders	Sugar Land, Texas
Taylor Petrick	Texas-Tyler	Jr.	Kinesiology	Argyle, Texas
Sarah Carmichael	Texas Lutheran	Jr.	Communications	Yoakum, Texas

MEN’S TENNIS

Name	School	Cl.	Major	Hometown
+Kevin Wright	Texas-Tyler	Sr.	Finance	College Station, Texas
Anthony Williamson	East Texas Baptist	Sr.	Chemistry / Biology	Tyler, Texas
Culleen Dees	Hardin-Simmons	Sr.	Exercise Science	Canyon, Texas
Carlos Cantu	LeTourneau	Sr.	Business Admin.	Brownsville, Texas
Nathan Boles	Louisiana College	Sr.	Biology	Pineville, La.
Preston Steblein	McMurry	So.	Management	Richland Hills, Texas
Josh Pownall	Mary Hardin-Baylor	Sr.	Sport Management	Bryan, Texas
Guilherme Portela	Texas Dallas	Jr.	Mech. Engineering	Curitiba, Brazil
David Schneider	Texas Lutheran	Jr.	Business	San Antonio, Texas

WOMEN’S TENNIS

Name	School	Cl.	Major	Hometown
+Rachel Houston	Texas Dallas	Jr.	Biology	Houston, Texas
Kallie Kent	East Texas Baptist	Sr.	Speech Communication	Mt. Pleasant, Texas
Morgan Rainer	Hardin-Simmons	Sr.	Communications	Texarkana, Texas
Gabriela Crunelle	Howard Payne	So.	Math / Education	Dumas, Texas
Sarah Case	LeTourneau	So.	Education	Van Alstyne, Texas
Taylor Henderson	Louisiana College	Sr.	Nursing	West Monroe, La.
Hilary Stone	McMurry	Sr.	Accounting	Holliday, Texas
AshLee Bilbo	Mary Hardin-Baylor	So.	Biology	College Station, Texas
Mitzi Morgan	Mississippi College	Jr.	English	Clinton, Miss.
Chelsea Glasscock	Ozarks	Jr.	Mathematics	Prairie Grove, Ark.
Kelley Spahn	Schreiner	Jr.	Exercise Science	Gonzales, Texas
Sydni Hermsdorf	Texas-Tyler	Sr.	Kinesiology	Spring, Texas
Jessica Flayer	Texas Lutheran	Sr.	Psychology	Oro Valley, Ariz.

MEN’S TRACK AND FIELD

Name	School	Cl.	Major	Hometown
+Brendon Kelso	Hardin-Simmons	Gr.	Sports Management	Jacksboro, Texas
Cedric Perry	Concordia Texas	So.	Communication	Round Rock, Texas
Zachary Frazier	McMurry	So.	History	The Woodlands, Texas
Shane Brogdon	Mississippi College	Jr.	Kinesiology	Birmingham, Ala.
Monta Jeffley	Texas-Tyler	Jr.	Kinesiology	Jefferson, Texas

WOMEN’S TRACK AND FIELD

Name	School	Cl.	Major	Hometown
+Ashley Meadows	Texas Lutheran	So.	Biology	Universal City, Texas
Megan Wagenaar	Concordia Texas	So.	Business	Missouri City, Texas
Kami Bellah	Hardin-Simmons	Jr.	Speech Pathology	Merkel, Texas
Chelsea Martinez	McMurry	Sr.	All Level P.E.	Sonora, Texas
Morgan Tynes	Mississippi College	So.	Elem. Education	Waynesboro, Miss.
Baylee Talaska	Texas-Tyler	Jr.	Kinesiology	San Antonio, Texas

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