The NJCAA has announced the names of the 2010-2011 NJCAA Academic Student-Athlete Awards as well as the 2010-2011 NJCAA All-Academic Teams.

Blinn softball All-American infielder Sara Vaughn (SO, Huntsville) received the Pinnacle Award for Academic Excellence with a 4.0 grade point average. Vaughn also received the 2011 Dr. James H. Atkinson Cup, as the sophomore student-athlete with the highest cumulative GPA at Blinn College. Vaughn finished her two-year career at Blinn with a perfect 4.0 GPA.

Superior Academic Achievement Award winners were baseball team member Kevin Hahn (FR, Stratford; 3.85 GPA), softball team member Tara Bell (SO, Baytown, 3.8 GPA) and women’s basketball team member Marqui Hodges (SO, Mesquite; 3.81 GPA).

Exemplary Academic Achievement Award winners includes baseball team member Chris Muellner (SO, Beaumont West Brook; 3.78 GPA) and softball players Lindsey Marik (SO, El Campo; 3.72 GPA) and Alyssa Vordenbaum (SO, Pasadena; 3.69 GPA).

To be eligible for the Academic Student-Athlete Awards, student-athletes must have completed three full-time semesters or four full-time quarters of college work and have participated in at least one season at the varsity level. To receive the Pinnacle Award for Academic Excellence, a student must have a 4.0 GPA. Requirements for the Superior Academic Achievement Award is a 3.8 to 3.99 GPA. Exemplary Academic Achievement Award requirements are 3.60 to 3.79. All awards are based on a 4.0 scale for 60 quarter hours or 45 semester hours.

In addition to these individual awards, the Buccaneer baseball team was announced as a NJCAA All-American team, with a team GPA of 3.16. This marks the second consecutive season the baseball program has achieved this honor. The minimum GPA requirement for consideration is a team GPA of 3.0.

Over 1,470 NJCAA student-athletes met the requirements for individual academic honors while over 370 teams qualified for academic team accolades.