Coker Celebrates National Student-Athlete Day, Honors Academic Achievements

by Christian Stryker, SID Coker College
4/2/2009

Hartsville, S.C. - The Coker College Athletic Department honored more than 80 student-athletes on Wednesday night at the Hartsville Country Club for their academic achievements over the last year. The annual Coker Athletics Academic Banquet was held in conjunction with National Student-Athlete Day, honoring those students who received 3.25 grade point averages or better in the fall or spring semesters of 2008.

The major award of the evening, Coker's Academic Athlete of the Year Award, was awarded to junior women's basketball player, Lotta Aaltonen. Lotta is a business major at Coker, achieving a 4.0 GPA in all five semesters. She is the co-captain of the women's basketball team, a member of PBL Business Organization, a member of the International Student Organization and was inducted into the Psi Chi Psychology Honor Society and Chi Alpha Sigma, National College Athlete Honor Society. A native of Rauma, Finland, Aaltonen was named All-Conference Honorable Mention in 2009, while averaging 14.6 points per game with 958 career points.

Other special honorees included, Shannon Townley, Academic All-American for Women's Cross Country and Shelly Catlett, Whitney Wallett, Sydney Greenwalt and Julia Nelson-Abbott, Academic All-Americans for Softball.

Coker also recognized the induction of eight new members to the National Collegiate Athletic Honor Society. The honor society is for those junior and senior student-athletes with a 3.4 GPA or higher for five semesters.

Of the more than 80 student-athletes honored 21 received 4.0 GPAs for the semester. Thirty-eight were named to the Dean's List, having a 3.75 or better semester GPA, and 25 were named to the Conference Carolinas Academic All-Conference Team.

The Women's Tennis Team received the Team GPA award for the fall and spring semesters of 2008, with a fall semester GPA was 3.18 and a spring semester GPA of 3.21.

The Academic Honors Banquet was created 20 years ago and designed to honor student-athletes of all ages who achieved excellence in academics and athletics.

See photos here.