Thirteen more John Brown University student-athletes, joining 43 fall sport student-athletes, from men's and women's basketball earned recognition from the Sooner Athletic Conference on June 11 by being named to the Academic All-Conference teams.

To be eligible for Academic All-Conference selection, student-athletes must be letter-winners who are in at least their second academic year at their institution and carry a cumulative grade-point average of 3.25 or higher, over the previous two semesters.

Women's basketball placed eight selections to the list, the most of any SAC programs, tying with Oklahoma Panhandle State and Wayland Baptist. On the men's side, five were honored, accounting for the third-most honorees among conference institutions. Last year, the Golden Eagles placed only 11 to the list between the basketball programs, marking an 18 percent improvement.

Overall in 2017-18, John Brown student-athletes earned 56 slots on the coveted Academic All-Conference teams, compared to 47 last academic year, improving the number of selections by nearly 20 percent.

"I am extremely proud of our student-athletes and the success they are having in the classroom," director of athletics Robyn Daugherty said. "The lifelong lessons and skills our students learn while competing in athletics is life-changing, but we also know that a college education is foundational for lifetime success. Our coaches do a fantastic job of prioritizing academics to all of our student-athletes. Academic rigor is high at JBU, and our coaches and student-athletes are committed to achieving in this environment."

The conference office also awards Team Academic All-Sooner Athletic distinctions and the Commissioner's Honor Roll, both to be presented at the end of the academic year. Teams that earn a cumulative 3.0 over the course of the academic year after averaging the GPAs of all letterwinners will earn Team Academic All-Sooner Athletic accolades while individual student-athletes that carry a cumulative 3.0 GPA over the previous two semesters garner a slot on the Commissioner's Honor Roll. Both distinctions are granted in June.

2018 Spring Academic All-Sooner Athletic Honorees

Name^Sport^Class^Hometown

Josh Bowling^Men's Basketball^Junior^Detroit, Mich.

Jake Caudle^Men's Basketball^Junior^Bentonville, Ark.

Mateo Habazin^Men's Basketball^Junior^Zagreb, Croatia

Joshua Rhodius*^Men's Basketball^Senior^Brampton, Ontario

Benjamin Smith*^Men's Basketball^Junior^Bentonville, Ark.

Karina Chandra^Women's Basketball^Junior^Brisbane, Australia

Kimmy Deines*^Women's Basketball^Senior^Springfield, Mo.

Courtney Fine*^Women's Basketball^Senior^Rowlett, Texas

Lauren Pelegreen*^Women's Basketball^Junior^Rockwall, Texas

K.J. Roh*^Women's Basketball^Sophomore^Lincoln, Neb.

Jana Schammel*^Women's Basketball^Senior^Plymouth, Minn.

Luize Skrastina*^Women's Basketball^Senior^Riga, Latvia

Sara Williams*^Women's Basketball^Sophomore^McKinney, Texas

* Denotes repeat selection