ROCK HILL, S.C. - For a third consecutive academic year, Carson-Newman has put more than 130 student athletes on the South Atlantic Conference's Commissioner's Honor Roll in back-to-back academic years.
The Eagles landed 134 student athletes on the honor roll, following up last year's 133 honorees and a school record 136 in 2014-15.
"Our first obligation when we think of student athletes is to think of the student," Carson-Newman Director of Athletics Allen Morgan said. " Their dedication reflects well on the field, which we believe also translates well back to the classroom. Our goal is to produce great students who are also athletes."
To be eligible for inclusion on the SAC Commissioner's Honor Roll, student-athletes must have competed in a sponsored championship sport and maintained a cumulate GPA of 3.30 or higher throughout the academic year.
"To have another record-breaking number of student-athletes on this list is a great honor for the entire South Atlantic Conference," South Atlantic Conference Commissioner Patrick Britz said. "Our student athletes, coaches and administrators work very hard to have success in the classroom and on the court/field of play and I am thrilled to recognize this accomplishment."
Carson-Newman's 134 honorees were part of a record-setting year for the league as well. A record 1,703 student-athletes, spanning each of the South Atlantic Conference's 12 member institutions and 18 sports, were named to the 2016-17 SAC Commissioner's Honor Roll. The number of honorees represents an increase of 148 student-athletes from last year's list.
Lenoir-Rhyne led the South Atlantic Conference with 188 student-athletes on the honor roll. Tusculum came in at No. 2 with 172. In third was Queens with 167, ahead of Wingate who posted 160. At No. 5 was Newberry with 153, followed by Coker with 139 and Lincoln Memorial with 136. Anderson and Catawba tied for the No. 9 slot with 128. Mars Hill recorded 105 student-athletes on the honor roll, while Brevard rounded out the list with 93.
In terms of raw numbers for Carson-Newman, football led the way with 27 honorees. Baseball had 13, while women's soccer and women's cross country/track and field had 12, each.
For percentages, the women's basketball, volleyball, women's tennis and women's golf teams saw at least 60 percent of their rosters recognized.
The accolades come on the heels of a year where Carson-Newman had a school record five athletes named academic All-America, football tight end Kooper Davis, women's soccer striker Jules Herrity, women's swimmer Nancy Claire Smith, baseball first baseman Paul Kirby and men's track high jumper Tanner Stepp.