LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Seven Missouri State University softball players were honored Wednesday by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association as All-American Scholar-Athletes in the organization's annual recognition of its top individual and team academic performers.  
 
MSU's honorees in the Easton/NFCA All-American Scholar-Athlete program for 2018-19 include: Erin Griesbauer, Hannah Heinrichs, Darby Joerling, Abi LaValley, Kyana Mason, Payton Minnis and Carolyn Stock. Laurels are bestowed on student-athletes achieving a 3.5 grade-point average or higher for the previous academic year.
 
It is Heinrichs' fourth All-American Scholar-Athlete recognition and third-time honor for Griesbauer. Joerling (2017), Mason (2016) and Stock (2018) made the exclusive list for the second time in their respective careers.
 
Missouri State has now accumulated 61 All-American Scholar-Athletes over the last six seasons.

Coach Holly Hesse's club finished the 2018-19 academic term with a 3.350 grade-point average, which tied Missouri State as the 91st-highest academic program among all NCAA Division I schools. The Bears have held a tradition of excellence in the team GPA category, finishing in the top 26 each of the previous five years, including the nation's second-best GPA in 2017 and 10th-best in 2016.
 
The rankings and honors recognize the academic prowess of softball teams across all of the NFCA's membership categories. The NFCA recognized 1,928 individuals at the NCAA Division I level in 2019, while 140 Division I programs posted a 3.0 team GPA or higher. All told, the NFCA recognized a record 8,161 student-athletes across all levels of softball from high school to NCAA Division I.
 
Hesse begins her 32nd season as Missouri State's head coach, having compiled 811 career victories. She returns 14 letterwinners from a 30-21 squad that finished fifth in the Missouri Valley Conference standings this spring.

The Bears host the All-Missouri DI Tournament this Saturday at Killian Softball Stadium in Springfield with Missouri State slated for fall exhibition contests against Saint Louis at Noon and against Missouri at 6 p.m. Other games in the tournament include: Saint Louis vs. Southeast Missouri at 2 p.m, and Missouri vs. Southeast Missouri at 4 p.m.  Admission for the tournament is free.