PISCATAWAY – Rutgers women's golf has been recognized as one of the nation's top 25 programs in academic performance by the Women's Golf Coaches Association for a second consecutive year. The Scarlet Knights, with a school record seven student-athletes recently named 2017-18 WGCA Division I All-America Scholars, maintained a 3.812 collective grade point average to place third among Division I and first among all Power 5 conference women's golf programs.

"Four years ago, we began to focus on creating a program full of incredible student-athletes," said head women's golf coach Kari Williams. "We have placed heavy emphasis on excellence in the classroom and the community. Earning a top three finish in the nation and the top spot for a power 5 school, considering the academic rigor of Rutgers University, is a huge accomplishment. We are very fortunate to have a dedicated academic support staff that provides our student-athletes the opportunity to be so successful."

Graduates Emily Mills and Tatum Jackson, rising redshirt senior Ashleigh Greenham, rising juniors Ana Cortes and Carrie-Ann Lee and rising sophomores Harriet Allsebrook and Lori Char all earned All-America Scholar honors on July 3. The criteria for selection is a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.5, while competing in at least half of the team's official rounds. The honor signaled the fourth for Mills and Jackson in as many seasons, and the second for both Greenham and Cortes. Mills and Jackson are both pursuing advanced degrees at the New York University School of Medicine and the University of Alabama School of Law, respectively.
 
Yesterday, Mills, Jackson, Greenham, junior Astrid Aneman, Cortes and Lee were recognized as Big Ten Distinguished Scholars after previously earning Big Ten All-Academic accolades. Distinguished Scholar Award recipients must be letterwinners in at least their second academic year at their institution with a minimum GPA of 3.7 or higher for the previous academic year, excluding summer school.
 
"I am very proud of our team and their commitment to being student-athletes who now hold all the scoring records at Rutgers, in addition to their academic success and presence in our community," said Williams. "I thank them for their hard work and commitment to getting a little better every day."
 
WGCA Division I Top 10 Academic Programs

University	Team GPA
University of Nebraska Omaha	3.949
Arkansas State University	3.866
Rutgers University	3.812
East Carolina University	3.806
Arizona State University	3.790
Seattle University	3.759
University of Cincinnati	3.751
University of South Carolina	3.747
University of Denver	3.739
Stanford University	3.734

Women's golf earned the Top Team Grade Point Average at the 2017-18 RAwards in May for the third consecutive year. With a perfect 1,000 multi-year rate for the past five years, women's golf was one of eight Rutgers programs to receive public recognition from the NCAA for its most recent multi-year Academic Progress Rate (APR) score. It signaled the sixth-straight year, and the seventh time overall, that women's golf was recognized by the NCAA for its academic progress.
 
Under Williams, the Scarlet Knights completed their season ranked 115th in the nation with a 304.88 scoring average to establish a new program record. Women's golf also earned the Rutgers Leadership Academy (RLA) Team Cup Award for its efforts in the community. The team maintained perfect participation in RLA initiatives and logged 304 hours this past academic year despite a roster much smaller than many of its peers.
 
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