Moving Forward

Athletic teams at LSU Eunice achieve national recognition regularly. Between them the baseball and softball teams have posted nine national championships since 2000, and the women’s basketball team has seen regional distinction. But that is just part of the success story. A high percentage of the school’s student athletes also excel in the classroom.

This year, fifteen LSU Eunice athletes were recognized by the National Junior College Athletic Association for academic excellence, three of them for achieving perfect 4.0 grade point averages.

That goes hand-in-hand with success in competition, and is an important part of what administrators regard as what constitutes a successful athletic program.

The Lady Bengals posted a 58-8 record in 2016 to win their fourth NJCAA Division II national softball championship. The others were in 2011, 2013, and 2014, and they were national runners-up in 2012. The baseball team has won five national titles—in 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, and 2015—and was ranked first in the nation for much of the 2016 season, building a 51-6 record before bowing out in the national championship series.

NJCAA Academic Student-Athlete Awards are given in three categories, based on the student’s grand point average. The Pinnacle Award for Academic Excellence is given to students with a 4.00 GPA, the Superior Academic Achievement Award is given to students with a 3.80 to 3.99 GPA, and the Exemplary Academic Achievement Award goes to those with a 3.60 to 3.79 GPA.

“At LSU Eunice, we are committed to providing the opportunities and the resources necessary for student-athletes to excel in competition, in the classroom and in the community,” said 

athletic director and baseball coach Jeff Willis. “Success on the playing field is, of course, important to an athletic program, but it is more important that our programs help produce men and women who will be successful throughout their lives.”
LSU Eunice had three Pinnacle Award Winners. Conner Bates, a freshman from Houma; Mark Fontenot, Jr., a sophomore from Oberlin; and Molly Willson, a freshman from Heflin each earned 4.00 GPAs.

Bethany LeJeune, a freshman from Mermentau; Orynn Veillon, a freshman from Lafayette; and Rebecca Skains, a freshman from Calhoun earned Superior Academic Achievement Awards.
Earning Exemplary Academic Achievement awards were Jeannemarie Angelle, a freshman from Arnaudville; Allison Daigle, a sophomore from Rayne; Elizabeth Fontenot, a freshman from Port Barre; Madison Edmonston, a sophomore from St. Amant; Mary Guillory, a freshman from Lake Charles; Olivia Gabor, a freshman from Kaplan; Evan Kissinger, a sophomore from Baton Rouge; Jaci Lavigne, a sophomore from Gonzales; and Evan Richardson, a sophomore from Prairieville.
The LSU Eunice athletes join a record 4,587 student-athletes nationwide honored with 2015-16 NJCAA Academic Student-Athlete Awards. Some 57,472 student-athletes participated in the NJCAA during the 2015-16 academic year, and 7.98 percent earned national academic honors.
In addition to work in the classroom, LSU-E student-athletes regularly participate in community activities.
“Besides introducing students to the idea of participation in the life of their communities, the outreach program fosters a relationship between local citizens and our student-athletes,” Willis said.