CHARLOTTE — The NJCAA announced the 2023-24 All-Academic teams on Thursday, and the area junior colleges are well represented.
WVU Potomac State College led the area jucos with 35 representatives, followed by Garrett College with 17 and Allegany College of Maryland with seven.
The Catamounts had eight first-team selections followed by six for the Lakers and two for the Trojans.
The first-team consists of student-athletes with a 4.0 GPA, the second-team is 3.80 to 3.99 and the third-team is 3.60 to 3.79.
Area high schools were also well represented, 10 had at least one alum.
Northern led the area schools with six, followed by Southern with five.
Hampshire had four, Frankfort had three and Keyser and Mountain Ridge earned two spots.
Allegany, Fort Hill, Bishop Walsh and Calvary each had one.
Representing Northern were Garrett’s Easton Rhoten and Ethan Sebold who were both first-team selections in baseball.
Mekerra Amtower, Arrisyn Amtower and Leah McKenzie earned first-team nods on the Potomac State women’s cross country team.
Zach Hallenbeck was a third-team selection in baseball.
Representing Southern were Garrett’s Anna Martin and Sydney Weeks for women’s soccer, both earning first-team honors.
Potomac State baseball’s Tanner Haskiell was a second-teamer while Johnna Collins earned third-team honors for women’s soccer and basketball.
Alexia Wolf of Garrett volleyball was a third-teamer.
All of Hampshire’s representatives are now at Potomac State.
Hannah Ault was a second-team selection, representing the women’s soccer and basketball programs.
Liz Pryor was also a second-teamer from women’s basketball.
Morgan Pyles and Alexa VanMeter were third-team picks from women’s soccer.
Frankfort was represented by two Trojans and a Catamount.
Andrew Lynch from ACM baseball was a first-team selection.
Jaci Rowe of Trojans volleyball was a third-teamer.
Arin Lease from the Catamounts women’s basketball team was a second-team pick.
Mountain Ridge was represented by Will Haberlein of Potomac State men’s cross country, a first-teamer while Garrett men’s basketball’s Nate Washington was a third-team selection.
Keyser earned a pair of third-team representatives in Potomac State baseball’s Sammy Bradfield and women’s basketball’s Alexis Taylor.
Allegany High’s representative was Samantha Preaskorn from Garrett women’s soccer.
Representing Fort Hill was Emily Mallow of ACM softball, a second-teamer.
Aiyana Yoder of Garrett Volleyball, a first-team selection represented Calvary while Potomac State’s Sarah Wharton represented Bishop Walsh on the third-team.
Along with the student-athletes, teams are also recognized as NJCAA academic teams of the year.
Potomac State had seven teams earn recognitions.
Baseball, women’s basketball, men’s and women’s cross country, men’s and women’s soccer and volleyball all had team GPA’s 3.16 or better.