ST. LOUIS, Mo. – Drake women's basketball players
Abbie Aalsma,
Ava Hawthorne, and
Shannon Fornshell were named to the Missouri Valley Conference 2026 Women's Basketball Scholar-Athlete Team, the league announced Tuesday.
Aalsma led the Bulldogs in scoring this season with just over 15 points per game. The senior earned a grade point average of 3.97 while studying Sociology.
Hawthorne finished her Bulldog career with this recognition after garnering GPAs of 3.76 in Health Care Administration and 3.81 in Health Informatics & Data Analytics. The graduate student led Drake's offense in assists.
Fornshell was one of two Drake players to post a perfect GPA of 4.0 while studying Clinical & Medical Health Science.
Belmont's veteran guard Tuti Jones was named the MVC Scholar-Athlete of the Year for carrying a 4.0 cumulative GPA in Sport Administration.
The criteria for the MVC Scholar-Athlete Team voting parallels the CSC (College Sports Communicators) standards for Academic All-America nominations. To be nominated, a student-athlete must have a 3.50 cumulative GPA, both as an undergraduate and graduate student, where applicable. If a GPA has not been established as a transfer student, the cumulative GPA from the nominees' previous institution must be used. Student-athletes must be at least a sophomore in academic and athletic standing. Redshirt freshmen are not eligible. Eligible nominees must compete in at least 75 percent of the regular season OR must start in at least 50 percent of the institution's games.
| School |
Name |
Year |
GPA |
Major |
| Belmont |
Jailyn Banks |
Junior |
3.5 |
Sport Administration |
| Belmont |
Hilary Fuller |
Sophomore |
3.54 |
Marketing |
| Belmont |
Tuti Jones |
Graduate |
4 |
Sport Administration |
| Belmont |
Avery Strickland |
Graduate |
4 |
Strategic Communication & Leadership |
| Bradley |
Mya Wardle |
Sophomore |
4 |
Sports Communication |
| Drake |
Abbie Aalsma |
Senior |
3.97 |
Sociology |
| Drake |
Ava Hawthorne |
Graduate |
3.76 / 3.81 |
Health Care Administration / Health Informatics & Data Analytics |
| Drake |
Shannon Fornshell |
Junior |
4 |
Clinical & Medical Health Science |
| Evansville |
Logan Luebbers Palmer |
Sophomore |
3.68 |
Sports Communication |
| Evansville |
Camryn Runner |
Sophomore |
4 |
Management |
| Evansville |
Elle Snyder |
Sophomore |
3.74 |
Exercise Science |
| UIC |
Crystal Ortiz |
Graduate |
3.66 |
Non-Degree |
| UIC |
Samantha Serrano |
Sophomore |
3.57 |
Criminology, Law & Justice |
| UIC |
Magdalena Winter |
Sophomore |
3.68 |
Psychology |
| UIC |
Sara Zabrecky |
Graduate |
4 |
Youth Development |
| Illinois State |
Trista Fayta |
Sophomore |
4 |
Business Administration |
| Illinois State |
Doneelah Washington |
Sophomore |
3.75 |
Business Administration |
| Indiana State |
Samiyah Briggs |
Senior |
3.91 |
Criminology & Criminal Justice |
| Indiana State |
Amerie Flowers |
Sophomore |
3.61 |
Psychology |
| Murray State |
Haven Ford |
Junior |
4 |
Health & Physical Education |
| Murray State |
Halli Poock |
Junior |
3.79 |
Finance |
| Northern Iowa |
Ryley Goebel |
Senior |
3.83 |
Nursing |
| Northern Iowa |
Kaylynn Janes |
Sophomore |
3.7 |
Exercise Science |
| Northern Iowa |
Bri Robinson |
Junior |
3.83 |
Biochemistry |
| Northern Iowa |
Taryn Wharton |
Senior |
3.74 |
Nursing |
| Southern Illinois |
Karris Allen |
Senior |
3.59 |
Exercise Science |
| Southern Illinois |
Alayna Kraus |
Sophomore |
4 |
Psychology |
| Southern Illinois |
Kelowna Ngoyi |
Sophomore |
3.92 |
Computer Science |
| Valparaiso |
Mikayla Huffine |
Senior |
3.51 |
Organizational Leadership |
| Valparaiso |
Milana Nenadic |
Graduate |
3.61 |
Sports Administration |
| Valparaiso |
Kennedy Sproule |
Junior |
3.7 |
Psychology |
| Valparaiso |
Kamryn Winch |
Senior |
3.86 |
Elementary Education |
