East Texas A&M University volleyball student-athletes Reese Fetty and Jade Smith have been selected to the Southland Conference All-Academic teams on Thursday morning.
Fetty (Farmersville) was named to the first team, while Smith (Houston – Mayde Creek) was named to the second team.
Following the fall season, Fetty received her graduate degree in health, kinesiology & sport studies last December. She has been twice named to the Academic All-District team by the College Sports Communicators, also earning Southland All-Academic honors, Southland Commissioner’s Honor Roll, and guided the Lions to the postseason for the 13th year in a row in 2024.
Smith was also named to the CSC Academic All-District team this fall. She is majoring in kinesiology & sport studies and has been named to the Southland Commissioner’s Honor Roll. Smith finished the 2024 season being the SLC leader in digs and was top 10 in the country. She was twice named the SLC Defensive Player of the Week.
Southland Conference All-Academic Teams are voted upon by the head coach, sports information director and an academic/compliance staff member from each school. Student-Athletes of the Year are voted upon by an awards committee which consists of one administrator from each member school. Voting for one’s own athletes is not permitted.
To be eligible for all-academic distinction, an athlete must hold a minimum 3.25 cumulative grade point average through the semester prior to the sport’s championship, completed at least one full academic semester at the nominating school prior to nomination, and participated in at least 50 percent of the team’s competitions during the most recently completed season. Student-Athlete of the Year nominees must have held at least a 3.50 GPA and have completed at least two years of athletic competition at the nominating school, including the current season.
First Team All-Conference athletes who meet all-academic nomination criteria are automatically named all-academic.
Southland Conference Volleyball Student-Athlete of the Year: Cicily Hidalgo, Southeastern
SOUTHLAND CONFERENCE VOLLEYBALL ALL-ACADEMIC-FIRST TEAM
Pos. | Name | School | Class | Hometown | Major |
OH | Reese Fetty | East Texas A&M | Gr. | Farmersville, Texas | Health Kinesiology & Sports Studies |
MB | Audrey Pearce | HCU | Sr. | Aledo, Texas | Kinesiology – Sport Management |
OH | McKenzie Moore | McNeese | Sr. | Tomball, Texas | Mass Communication |
L | Bailey Tillman | McNeese | Sr. | Sugar Land, Texas | Mass Communication |
OH | Cicily Hidalgo | Southeastern | Sr. | Opelousas, La. | Business Adminstration |
MB | Kyanna Creecy | SFA | So. | McKinney, Texas | Kinesiology |
MB | Katherine Holtman | SFA | Fr. | Argyle, Texas | Biology |
MB | Isabella Ortiz | SFA | Jr. | Flower Mound, Texas | Kinesiology |
S | Alex Hoglund | Texas A&M-Corpus Christi | Gr. | Berkely, Calif. | Business Administration |
OH | Kyndal Payne | Texas A&M-Corpus Christi | Sr. | Haslet, Texas | Biomedical Studies |
MB | Leah Stolfus | Texas A&M-Corpus Christi | Sr. | Denton, Texas | Kinesiology |
S | Isabella Costantini | UTRGV | So. | Curitiba, Brazil | Nutritional Sciences |
RS | Ilana De Assis | UTRGV | Sr. | Chapadao do Ceu, Brazil | Kinesiology |
OH | Claudia Lupescu | UTRGV | Sr. | Bucharest, Romania | Criminal Justice |
SOUTHLAND CONFERENCE VOLLEYBALL ALL-ACADEMIC-SECOND TEAM
Pos. | Name | School | Class | Hometown | Major |
DS/L | Jade Smith | East Texas A&M | Sr. | Houston, Texas | Kinesiology & Sports Studies |
S | Grace McLaughlin | HCU | Sr. | Lucas, Texas | Kinesiology |
DS/L | Audrey Patton | UIW | Sr. | Boca Raton, Fla. | |
OH/OPP | Risa Sena | UIW | Sr. | Long Beach, Calif. | |
MH | Hannah Brewer | Southeastern | Sr. | Benton, Ark. | Business Administration |
OH | Reaghan Thompson | Northwestern State | Jr. | Kemah, Texas | Nursing |
DS | Brooklyn Jaeger | Texas A&M-Corpus Christi | R-So. | Fayetteville, Texas | Kinesiology |
Source and photo credit: lionathletics.com