2019 Google Cloud Academic All-America® Softball Teams
 
NEW ORLEANS – Four Sun Belt Conference softball student-athletes earned recognition on the 2019 Google Cloud Academic All-America® NCAA Division I Softball Teams, as selected by CoSIDA.
 
A pair of outfielders, Coastal Carolina sophomore Courtney Dean and Georgia Southern junior Shelby Wilson, were named to the first team, UTA junior shortstop Whitney Walton was named to the second team and Georgia State redshirt senior third base Kristin Hawkins was named to the third team.
 
Dean played in 52 games where she had a team-high .327 batting average and 11 doubles and was second on the team with 13 home runs and 36 RBI. A two-time, All-Sun Belt selection, Dean earned a cumulative 4.0 grade point average for the second-straight academic year in 2018-19. She is a 2019 Google Cloud Academic All-District member, a two-time President's List (4.0 grade point average) member, a two-time Dean's List member (3.5 GPA or higher), 2017-18 NFCA Academic All-American and a member of the 2017-18 Sun Belt Conference Commissioner's List.
 
Wilson enjoyed a career season in 2019, hitting .354 with eight doubles, eight home runs and 37 RBI. She also drew a team-leading 30 walks for a .481 on-base percentage. Wilson ranked among the Sun Belt's leaders in slugging percentage (8th, .600) and on-base percentage (4th, .481). In the classroom, Wilson carried a perfect 4.0 GPA in exercise science and graduated in May with her bachelor's degree, finishing her studies in only three seasons.
 
Walton helped lead UTA to the National Invitational Softball Championship title, hitting .393 with school single-season record 66 runs scored. She also finished second in the Sun Belt with 79 hits, the second most in a single season in school history. A kinesiology & fitness-wellness major, Walton boasts a 4.00 GPA. She is just the third Maverick named Academic All-America, joining Lisa Verheul who was selected in 1999 and 2000.
 
Hawkins owned Georgia State's second-best batting average (.277) and was tied for the team's home run lead (4). She homered in three-straight games this season. Her game-ending diving catch to lead the Panthers to a win at Kennesaw State was featured on ESPN SportsCenter's Top 10 plays as the No. 2 highlight. A two-time, first-team Academic All-District selection, Hawkins holds a 4.06 GPA in her first year of Post-Baccalaureate education after earning a perfect 4.0 GPA during her undergraduate career.