PLANO - UTSA seniors Amanda Horton and Mel Torres have been named to the 2006 Capitol One/Southland Conference Softball All-Academic Team released by the league office Monday.
Horton and Torres were two of 11 student-athletes selected to the team on a vote by head coaches, academic services directors and sports information directors around the league. Nine of the 11 all-academic selections are upperclassmen and eight are Texas natives. Texas State, Texas-Arlington and UTSA each had two named to the list, while five additional universities had one honoree.
Horton, the SLC Utility Player of the Year and a first team all-conference selection in the outfield, graduated in May with a 3.24 grade point average (gpa) in construction management. She led the league with 19 home runs and ranked third in the NCAA with 0.37 home runs per game. Horton, also an All-SLC Tournament selection, batted .279 and drove in a conference-best 50 runs this season, ranking in the top 15 in the country in runs batted in per game (0.98).
Torres, a second team all-conference pick at second base, earned her first academic nod with a 3.16 gpa in kinesiology. She picked up second team all-conference honors at second base after hitting .328 with 11 doubles, 10 home runs and 27 RBI.
Horton and Torres helped the Roadrunners capture their third consecutive SLC regular season championship and their second SLC Tournament title in the past three years. UTSA advanced to the NCAA Regional for the second time in program history, finishing the season with a 37-14 record.
The all-academic team honors student-athletes who were selected all-conference and/or named as a national all-academic recipient this year while also earning at least a 3.0 GPA. Student-athletes must have completed one full academic year at the nominating institution and participated in at least 50 percent of the team’s competition. The student-athlete of the year is annually presented to the individual in each conference sport who achieves excellence in academics and athletics. Nominees shall have earned at least a 3.2 cumulative GPA to go along with superior athletics achievement.
2006 Capital One/Southland Conference Softball All-Academic Team
Heather Hanson, IF, Louisiana-Monroe
Jana Jones, IF, McNeese State
Lyndsey Gorski#, IF, Northwestern State
Mel Torres, IF, UTSA
Amanda Horton, DP, UTSA
Lacey Leadbetter, C, Texas-Arlington
Stephanie Mosley#, OF, Sam Houston State
Brooke Lockhart, OF, Southeastern Louisiana
Amy Hromadka*^, OF, Texas State
Laura Jones#, P, Texas-Arlington
Katie Ann Trahan#, P, Texas State
* Southland Conference Student-Athlete of the Year
^ Denotes automatic selection. Individual was voted ESPN The Magazine Academic All-American
# 2005 SLC All-Academic selection