HAMMOND – The Southeastern Louisiana University softball team placed three student-athletes on the 2011 Southland Conference Softball All-Academic Teams which were announced by the league office on Tuesday.

Lady Lion Katie Duhe, a Lutcher native who graduated with a 4.0 in accounting in December, was named to the first team for the third straight year. Duhe was one of two Lady Lions to earn a repeat appearance on the league's All-Academic squad, as junior Meghan Gomez, a 3.52 student in biology, was selected to the second team for a second straight season.

Gomez was joined on the second team by fellow Alvin, Texas product Kelsey Nichols. Nichols, a math education major who carries a 3.08 grade point average, was selected to the team for the first time.

The academic honor was the final in a long list for Duhe. Last month, Duhe was named to the CoSIDA Academic All-America team as a first team selection and became the third student-athlete in school history to be named to the Academic All-America team multiple times. The 2010 Southland Softball Student-Athlete of the Year, Duhe is a three-time Academic All-District VI choice. At the university's Fall commencement exercises, Duhe received the President's Medal for Academic Excellence – the university's highest academic honor.

On the field, Duhe, a second team All-Southland and honorable mention All-Louisiana pick, finished the season among the Southland Conference leaders with a .341 batting average (11th) and a .431 on-base percentage (8th) to go with 42 hits, eight doubles, 24 runs and 20 walks. A .339 career hitter, she finished her career second in school history with 186 hits and 92 runs scored.

Gomez was among the team's leaders with five home runs, 20 RBI and eight doubles. In her three seasons with the Lady Lions, she has 20 home runs, 20 doubles and 62 RBI and has twice been named to the All-Southland Conference team.

A second team All-Southland and second team All-Louisiana selection, Nichols established herself as the team's top hitter in her first year as a full-time starter. She ranked among the league leaders with a .358 batting average (4th), .517 slugging percentage (10th), .420 on-base percentage (10th), 54 hits (10th), 78 total bases (10th) and nine doubles (13th). She also led the team with 21 RBI and nine sacrifices, while finishing second on the team with five home runs.

Southeastern was one of five schools to put more than two student-athletes on the Southland All-Academic team. Texas State led the way with four selections, while Southeastern, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Central Arkansas and McNeese State each had three on the team.

Along with Duhe, A&M-Corpus Christi junior Hannah Schwarz was one of two Southland Conference Student-Athletes to earn Academic All-America accolades, earning third team honors last month. A first team All-Southland honor, Schwarz was selected as the Southland Softball Student-Athlete of the Year.

Established in the 2002-03 academic year, the conference honors one student-athlete from each of the 17 championship sports who achieves excellence in academics, athletics and community/campus service.

The student-athlete of the year, selected by the league's awards committee, will have attained athletics achievement for at least two years at the nominating institution, possess at least a 3.20 cumulative GPA and demonstrated extracurricular service at her campus and or community.

The all-academic teams are voted on by the head coaches, sports information directors and academic/compliance administrators from each Southland university. Student-athletes must possess a 3.0 cumulative GPA, have completed one full academic year at the nominating institution and participated in at least 50 percent of the team's competition to qualify for the all-academic squad.

2011 Southland Conference Softball All-Academic Teams

First Team
Name – University – Class – Hometown – GPA – Major/Minor
Katie Duhe – Southeastern Louisiana – Gr. – Lutcher, La. – 4.00 – MBA/Accounting (Bachelor's)
Hannah Schwarz – A&M-Corpus Christi – Jr. – Kerrville, Texas – 4.00 – Interdisciplinary Studies
Katie McGregor – Central Arkansas – Jr. – Lake Jackson, Texas – 3.83 – Management
Kelee Grimes – Northwestern State – Jr. – Pineville, La. – 3.89 – Business/Fashion
Melanie Bryant – Central Arkansas – So. – Hernando, Miss. – 3.57 – Pre-Nursing
Lauren Dodson – A&M-Corpus Christi – Sr. – Grove, Okla. – 3.24 – English
Caley Jeter – A&M-Corpus Christi – Sr. – Huntsville, Texas – 3.63 – Accounting
Rebecca Collum – UT Arlington – Sr. – New Boston, Texas – 3.58 – Kinesiology
Anne Marie Taylor – Texas State – So. – Houston, Texas – 3.14 – Interdisciplinary Studies
Courtney Zink – UT Arlington – Jr. – Highlands, Texas – 4.00 – Kinesiology
Kayla Shepherd – McNeese State – Sr. – Baytown, Texas – 3.78 – General Studies
Katie Shumaker – McNeese State – Sr. – Beaumont, Texas – 3.84 – H&HP-Exercise Science

Second Team
Name – University – Class – Hometown – GPA – Major/Minor
Jenna Emery – Texas State – Sr. – Sugar Land, Texas – 3.17 – Respiratory Care
Lindsey Langner – McNeese State – Sr. – Pearland, Texas – 3.82 – H&HP-Exercise Science
Kylie Roos – Northwestern State – So. – Celina, Texas – 3.27 – Industrial Engineering Technology
Chandler Hall – Texas State – Jr. – Baytown, Texas – 3.06 – Fashion Merchandising
Lauren Luetge – Stephen F. Austin – Sr. – New Ulm, Texas – 3.68 – Kinesiology
Tori Benavidez – Sam Houston State – So. – Midlothian, Texas – 3.41 – General Business
Kelsey Nichols – Southeastern Louisiana – So. – Alvin, Texas – 3.08 – Math Education
Melissa Bryant – Central Arkansas – So. – Hernando, Miss. – 3.86 – Pre-Nursing
Anna Hernandez – Texas State – So. – Buda, Texas – 3.29 – Exercise and Sports Science
Tomi Garrison – Sam Houston State – Jr. – Garland, Texas – 3.43 – Psychology
Meghan Gomez – Southeastern Louisiana – Jr. – Alvin, Texas – 3.52 – Biology
Megan Gaspard – Nicholls – Jr. – Coteau, La. – 3.07 – Health and Human Performance

2011 Southland Conference Softball Student-Athlete of the Year: Hannah Schwarz, A&M-Corpus Christi