Herrity, Talbut-Smith named first-team Academic All-District

Herrity, Talbut-Smith named first-team Academic All-District

AUSTIN, Texas – Senior Julianne Herrity (Donegal, Ireland) and sophomore Holly Talbut-Smith (Crawley, England) have both been named to the 2016 NCAA Division II Academic All-District 3 Women's Soccer team. The players were chosen by the College Sports Information Directors of America.

This is the first appearance by either player on this team, which is selected annually. It does mark the second straight year an Eagle has made an appearance on the all-district squad, as Nikki McWilliams was a member of the group last season.

Herrity is a senior at Carson-Newman who is majoring in business administration and has a 3.56 GPA. After being named the SAC Player of the Year last season, the Donegal, Ireland native has continued her stellar play this year, racking up 14 goals, a total that has her tied for 13th in the nation and is third in the South Atlantic Conference. Her 32 points place her 15th in Division II and second in the SAC.

Talbut-Smith is in the midst of a stellar sophomore season, both on the field and in the classroom. She owns a 3.91 GPA as she pursues a major in exercise science. She is also the SAC leader in assists with nine and is also tied for 12th in the country in that category. Her 23 points put her tied for fourth in the conference.

Four other players from the SAC were chosen for inclusion on the team. Kelli McCalla and Carlie Thornber of Tusculum and Macy Franklin and Kaitlyn Brunworth of Wingate were also first-team honorees.

The Academic All-District teams are divided into eight geographic districts across the United States and Canada. First-team Academic All-District honorees advance to the CoSIDA Academic All-America® Team ballot, where first-, second- and third-team All-America honorees will be selected later this month.

One more match remains on the Eagles regular season schedule and it pits them against the Coker Cobras on Saturday at 2 p.m. at McCown Field. The Eagles will be trying to earn a share of the South Atlantic Conference title, which they can capture with a win and a Tusculum loss.

-CN-