McWilliams garners first-team Academic All-District honor
ORLANDO – Carson-Newman senior forward Nikki McWilliams (Saintfield, Northern Ireland) was named a member of the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-District first-team for Division II’s District 3 on Thursday afternoon.
ORLANDO – Carson-Newman senior forward Nikki McWilliams (Saintfield, Northern Ireland) was named a member of the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-District first-team for Division II's District 3 on Thursday afternoon.
McWilliams's addition to the team was the first academic honor for an Eagle in recent memory.
McWilliams will graduate with her Masters of Business Administration in May and currently possesses a 3.80 GPA.
"It means a lot, obviously. I'm just happy for the team and happy to be recognized," McWilliams said. "It's all about managing your time. Obviously, school work comes first or you can't play on the soccer field."
This season, the senior has seven goals and an assist in 16 appearances. McWilliams scored on Tuesday night against Tusculum and has two multi-goal performances on the year.
McWilliams is one of five players representing the South Atlantic Conference on the first-team; the SAC's five players ranks second of the three conferences that comprise District 3. The Peach Belt led with six representatives, while no one from Conference Carolinas garnered the award.
The Academic All-DistrictTM teams include the student-athletes listed on the following pages and are divided into eight geographic districts across the United States and Canada. First-team Academic All-DistrictTM honorees advance to the CoSIDA Academic All-America® Team ballot, where first-, second- and third-team All-America honorees will be selected later this month.
McWilliams and the 21st-ranked Eagles conclude their regular season schedule and have an opportunity to clinch its first SAC regular season outright title since 2009 with a trip to face the Coker Cobras at 2 p.m. on Saturday afternoon.
GK Maylyn Parsons COLUMBUS STATE (GA) Jr. Greenville, S.C. 4.00 Engineering studies
D Brianna Belsky LENOIR-RHYNE Sr. Egg Harbor Twp., N.J. 3.94 Chemistry
D Macy Franklin WINGATE Jr. Conover, N.C. 3.73 Athletic training
D Shelby Rolling COLUMBUS STATE (GA) Sr. Stayner, Ontario 3.95 Health science
D Carlie Thornber TUSCULUM So. Oshawa, Ontario 4.00 Biology (pre-med)
M Maria Marti Bartis CLAYTON STATE Gr. Girona, Spain 4.00 Health administration
M Ally Barys GEORGIA COLLEGE Sr. Ladera Ranch, Calif. 4.00 Exercise science
M Kaitlyn Brunworth WINGATE Jr. Littleton, Colo. 4.00 Biology
F Nicole Corcione COLUMBUS STATE (GA) Jr. Candler, N.C. 4.00 Nursing
F Chelsea Person COLUMBUS STATE (GA) Sr. Decatur, Ga. 3.94 Communication
F Nikki McWilliams CARSON-NEWMAN Gr. Saintfield, N. Ireland 3.80 MBA
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