By Joshua J. Darling, Sports Information Director
GREENWOOD, Ind. – An academic performance of historical levels continues as LaGrange Athletics has made history once again with a program record four College Sports Communicators (formerly CoSIDA) Softball Academic All-District selections as announced by that organization on Tuesday, May 16.
CoSIDA/CSC has been presenting Academic All-District honors since 1982-83 and not only are junior infielder Lindsey Swearngin (Tyrone, Ga.), sophomore infielder Kenzie Hornsby (Tallassee, Ala.), junior catcher Lindsey Green (Temple, Ga.) and sophomore outfielder Abby Vanhoose (LaGrange, Ga.) are the first individuals in the history of the softball program to be so honored, they represent a new LaGrange Athletics record.
That is a record that has already been set twice this year with women’s basketball senior guard Gracie Brunel (Broxton, Ga.) becoming the first such selection in program history on February 22 of this year. On May 9 that mark fell again when junior Leila Moss (Suwanee, Ga.) and seniors Kirsten Boyd (Alabaster, Ala.) and Karson Troth (Marshall, Mo.) earned the first three honors for the women’s tennis program.
Each of the Panthers’ honorees distinguished themselves on an off the field with each earning a place on the Vice President of Academic Affairs (VPAA) List in Fall 2022 and a combined six USA South All-Academic honors. Vanhoose and Hornsby claimed the latter in 2022 with Green and Swearngin earning them in each of the past two seasons.
Swearngin hit .308 with a .365 on-base percentage and .372 slugging percentage to go with 16 runs, five doubles and 11 RBIs and had a hit in 17 of the 25 games she played in. Of the latter, five were multi-hit and she also had 10 games with a run and six with an RBI.
Vanhoose had hits in 11 games with six multi-hit efforts and scored in eight of her 26 games. She also had an RBI in seven games while hitting .306 with a .371 slugging percentage, eight RBIs and five stolen bases in seven tries.
Hornsby appeared in 22 games with 18 starts while producing 13 runs to go with a .275 batting average and .383 on-base percentage. She also tied for the team lead with four hit-by-pitches and earned a spot on the USA South All-Sportsmanship Team in 2022. This year she was ever present on the basepaths, scoring in 10 games and notching a hit in 10 outings.
Green notched 18 starts in her 23 games and scored six runs with seven RBIs. Behind the plate she committed just one error in team-high 96 chances.
Off the field she has excelled with a number of honors. Those include the Hines Undergraduate Award in Applied Research, scholarships from the Educational Foundation of Georgia CPA’s (Windham Brannon's Jim Duval Scholarship and Academic Excellence) and was named an Outstanding Peer Scholar. She is also a member of Delta Mu Delta, the Business Honor Society, took home first place in the ACBSP Region 3 Student Showcase and will serve as an accounting assistant at LaGrange this summer.
“These young women never cease to amaze me,” said head coach Mel Rushing. “On top of the countless hours it takes to excel on the field, they have also been able to excel in their academic work AND give back to the College. From projects that get published in academic papers to leading organizations that raise thousands of dollars for charitable causes to helping build a program focused on wellbeing these young women are setting themselves up to make a BIG difference in the world. I could not be more proud to be their coach.”
With their selections, Green, Hornsby, Swearngin and Vanhoose are now eligible for CSC Academic All-America honors, which will be announced on Wednesday, June 6.
LAGRANGE AND COSIDA/CSC ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT/ALL-AMERICA HISTORY
CSC has presented Academic All-District since 1982-83 in men’s and women’s basketball, softball, baseball, women’s volleyball, football and men’s and women’s At-Large divisions and since 2001-02 in men’s and women’s soccer and men’s and women’s track & field and cross country. In that time no Panther had ever achieved this honor according to available CSC records (dating reliably to 2001-02) before the eight individuals to do so in 2022-23.
Prior to this year, the only LaGrange student-athlete to earn honors through what was then known as CoSIDA was men’s basketball’s Todd Whitsitt, who was named First-Team Academic All-America in 1979-80, three years before the organization began recognizing All-District teams. He is now a doctor in Colorado and a member of the LaGrange Athletics Hall of Fame.
ABOUT THE CSC ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICA PROGRAM
The 2023 CSC Academic All-District Softball Team, selected by members of College Sports Communicators since 1982-83, has been released to recognize the nation's top student-athletes for their combined performances athletically and in the classroom.
To be eligible for Academic All-District and All-America consideration, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.50 on a scale of 4.0, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings at his/her current institution and be nominated by his/her sports information director. In a change to the program for 2022-23, the number of individuals that can be nominated is capped at five but those individuals meeting the criteria are automatically All-District selections.
Since the program's inception in 1952, CoSIDA/CSC has bestowed Academic All-America honors on more than 20,000 student-athletes in Divisions I, II, III and NAIA, covering all NCAA championship sports.
LaGrange History of Academic All-District Selections (8 Selection/8 Individuals)
2022-23 – Lindsey Green (Softball)
2022-23 – Kenzie Hornsby (Softball)
2022-23 – Lindsey Swearngin (Softball)
2022-23 – Abby Vanhoose (Softball)
2022-23 – Kirsten Boyd (Women’s Tennis)
2022-23 – Leila Moss (Women’s Tennis)
2022-23 – Karson Troth (Women’s Tennis)
2022-23 – Gracie Brunel (Women’s Basketball)
LaGrange History of Academic All-America Selections (1 Selection/1 Individual)
1979-80 – Todd Whitsitt (Men’s Basketball)&%*
%First-Team Academic All-America (only individual to accomplish in program history)
*First Academic All-America in Program History
&Prior to Academic All-District Teams (1982-83)
