AUSTIN, Texas — Five Tusculum University student-athletes have been named to the 2024 NCAA Division II Softball Academic All-District® 3 first team as selected by the College Sports Communicators.
Earning CSC Academic All-District® honors for the TU softball program are: Ellie Alvarez, Danielle Jason, Sammy Jimenez, Emily Sappington and Claire Smeltzer.
The 2024 Academic All-District® Softball Team recognizes the nation’s top student-athletes for their combined performances on the field and in the classroom.
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 and must be at least a sophomore. For position players, nominees must have competed in at least 90 percent of team games played or have started at least 66 percent of the total number of team games played. For pitchers, nominees must pitch 25-plus innings or appear in 17 contests as a pitcher.
Alvarez, a sophomore infielder from Plano, Illinois, has a 3.97 GPA while majoring in education. She is a member of the SAC Commissioner’s Honor Roll, Dean’s List, Charles Oliver Gray Honors List, President’s List and the Tusculum Athletic Director’s Honor Roll.
She started in all 52 games at shortstop for the Pioneers where she batted .392 which was tied for the third-best average on the team. She totaled 60 hits including 11 doubles, one triple, nine home runs and 29 RBI. Her 60 hits were third on the team and the 10th-most in a TU single-season. She accounted for a team-best .654 slugging percentage (13th in SAC) to go along with a .439 on-base percentage. She recorded 13 stolen bases and led the team with 66 fielding assists.
Alvarez, a transfer from Bellarmine University, was also a 2023 NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete and an ASUN Honor Roll selection.
Jason, a graduate student from Olyphant, Pennsylvania, has a 4.00 GPA in her graduate studies at Tusculum in organizational management, to go along with her 3.95 GPA during her undergraduate work in psychology. She is a member of the Tusculum Athletic Director’s Honor Roll, SAC Commissioner’s Honor Roll, Dean’s List, President’s List and Charles Oliver Gray Honors List.
She garnered All-South Atlantic Conference second team honors in 2024. She finished sixth in the conference with her .416 batting average while playing in 49 games including 25 as a designated player and 24 in the outfield. Her 24 stolen bases were second-most in the conference while her .889 stolen base percentage (24-of-27) was tops in the league. She scored 40 runs and posted four doubles, two triples and a home run to go along with 13 RBI.
Jimenez, a sophomore catcher from Bartlett, Illinois, has a 3.90 GPA while majoring in elementary education. She is a member of the President’s List, SAC Commissioner’s Honor Roll, Athletic Director’s Honor Roll and the Charles Oliver Gray Honors List.
She established a new program single-season record with her 14 home runs while her 43 RBI where second on the club. She batted .262 and started in 51 contests where she totaled 37 hits including five doubles and led the team with 25 walks which are the fifth-most in program history. Her 14 home runs were also tied for sixth in the conference.
Sappington, graduate student from Ashburn, Virginia, returns to the CSC Academic All-District® team and is wrapping up one of the finest pitching careers in school history. She has a 4.00 GPA for her graduate work to go along with her 3.70 GPA during her undergraduate studies at Tusculum while majoring in elementary education.
In 2024, she led TU with a 14-7 record and a 2.44 earned run average in the circle while establishing a new school single-season record with 189 strikeouts (3rd in SAC / 34th in NCAA II). Her 9.2 strikeouts per seven innings pitched ratio is second in the conference and 12th-best in the nation. She recorded 17 complete games and also posted three saves (2nd in SAC / 44th in NCAA II).
Sappington earned D2CCA All-Southeast Region second team honors and was an All-SAC third team choice this spring. She is a two-time All-Region and All-Conference choice and was the 2021 SAC Tournament MVP where she led the Pioneers to their first SAC Tournament title and NCAA II Tournament berth.
Sappington leaves Tusculum as the program’s all-time leader in strikeouts (635 – 10th in SAC history), shutouts (18) and saves (9). Her 48 career wins are fifth-most in the TU record book while her 67 complete games are tied for second in program history.
Smeltzer, a senior outfielder from Smithfield, Virginia, also returns to the CSC Academic All-District® team. She has a 3.71 GPA as a nursing major and is a member of the SAC Commissioner’s Honor Roll, Dean’s List, Athletic Director’s Honor Roll and the Charles Oliver Gray Honors List. She is also a two-time recipient of the D2ADA Academic Achievement Award.
She earned All-SAC first team honors in the outfield and led the Pioneers with her .455 on-base percentage. The 2024 D2CCA All-Region second team selection batted .392 (13th in SAC) and totaled a team-best 65 hits which included 15 doubles (5th in SAC), two triples and seven home runs. Her 50 RBI (8th in SAC) were tops on the club and sixth-most in a TU single-season while garnering team MVP laurels.
Smeltzer’s .347 career batting average is eighth in the TU record book, while she is sixth in career doubles (44), 10th in career RBI (114) and 11th in career home runs (14). She was also a member of the 2021 SAC All-Tournament Team.
The Pioneers posted a 30-22 season in 2024 and finished fifth in the conference standings, while advancing to the opening weekend of the SAC Tournament.
The CSC Academic All-America® program separately recognizes softball 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-, second- and third-team Academic All-America® honorees will be announced June 18.
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 2023-2024 Divisions II and III Academic All-America® programs.
