Softball players receive CoSIDA Academic All-America honors

Seniors Haley Pace and Bailey Rhoney have garnered Academic All-America honors from the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

Pace, a three-time CoSIDA Academic all-America, earned First Team Academic All-American honors for the second straight season. A two-time First Team All-Conference USA selection and two-time NFCA All-Mideast Region choice, Pace started every game in her four-year career and holds the 49ers school records for batting average, slugging percentage, hits, RBI and home runs. She batted .348 this season with a team-high eight homers and 36 RBI. A 4.0 student, she graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and has accepted a post-graduate scholarship from the Turner School of Accountancy in the Belk College of Business.

Rhoney adds a first Academic All-American appearance, as a member of the second team, after being named to the Academic All-District 3 Team for the first time in her career. She led the 49ers with a career-high .360 batting average and added six doubles and 16 RBI. She has a 3.9 GPA in accounting.

The 2018 Google Cloud Academic All-American Softball Team, selected by CoSIDA, recognizes the nation’s top student-athletes for their combined performances on the field and in the classroom.