The Lee University women’s golf team received another honor from the Women's Golf Coaches Association (WGCA) on Tuesday (July 16) when it was listed 24th among the top 25 NCAA DII women’s collegiate golf programs with the highest collective average team GPAs which includes all the team’s student-athletes for the 2023-24 season.
The Lady Flames finished the 2023-24 year with an impressive 3.693 GPA. The University of Findlay (3.919) was listed as No. 1. Only one other team from the Gulf South Conference, the University of West Georgia, made the top 25.
West Georgia will become a member of DI next season.
Earlier Lee had five players earn All-American Scholar Team individual honors. Earning the honors were Hope Harrell, Olivia Ireland, Emily Ritchie,
Supuschaya "Yui" Srichantamit, and
Banthita "Pearl" Phoncharatkun. "Yui," a graduate student, was not only a member of the WGCA All-American Scholar Team with a 4.0 GPA and majored in International Business, but she was also a 2023 WGCA DII First Team All-American.
“I am super proud of my girls!” said coach Geandra Almedia after receiving the news. “This is a huge accomplishment and a great team effort! We hope to continue to raise the standards for this program and excel in everything we do!”
Lee Athletic Director John Maupin added, “Our women’s golf program has a long history of success in the classroom, and this is the latest example. I’m proud of the emphasis our coaches put on academics and the work our student athletes put into their studies. Looking at this list, I believe we are 1 of 3 teams that finished in the top 10 in the nation on the course and made the list of Top 25 academic teams—that’s elite company!”
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1
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University of Findlay
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3.919
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2
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Davenport University
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3.915
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3
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Rollins College
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3.835
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4
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West Texas A&M University
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3.821
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5
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Eckerd College
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3.819
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6
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University of South Carolina Beaufort
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3.818
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7
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St. Mary's University (TX)
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3.817
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8
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Kentucky Wesleyan College
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3.814
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9
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Winona State University
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3.800
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10
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University of Sioux Falls
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3.783
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11
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Rockhurst University
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3.778
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12
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Saint Martin's University
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3.772
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13
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Catawba College
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3.752
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14
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Hawaii Pacific University
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3.730
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15
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Fort Hays State University
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3.726
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T16
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Sonoma State University
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3.725
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T16
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Texas A&M International University
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3.725
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18
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Maryville University
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3.714
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19
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Lander University
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3.711
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T20
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William Jewell College
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3.702
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T20
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Cal State California State University, Los Angeles
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3.702
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22
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University of West Georgia
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3.698
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23
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University of Central Missouri
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3.697
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24
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Lee University
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3.693
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25
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Lincoln Memorial University
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3.691
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The Women’s Golf Coaches Association, founded in 1983, is a non-profit organization representing women’s collegiate golf coaches. The WGCA was formed to encourage the playing of college golf for women in correlation with a general objective of education and in accordance with the highest tradition of intercollegiate competition. Today, the WGCA represents over 750 coaches throughout the U.S. and is dedicated to educating, promoting and recognizing both its members and the student-athletes they represent.