Eight Bucs Earn CSC Academic All-District Honors
Following another outstanding year both in the classroom and in competition, eight Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers have earned CSC Academic All-District honors for the 2023-2024 academic year. The Bucs eight student-athletes honored were the only junior college student-athletes in the state of Florida to earn the honors.
GREENWOOD, Ind.- Following another outstanding year both in the classroom and in competition, eight Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers have earned CSC Academic All-District honors for the 2023-2024 academic year. The Bucs eight student-athletes honored were the only junior college student-athletes in the state of Florida to earn the honors.
The Academic All-District Teams, selected by College Sports Communicators, recognize the nation's top student-athletes for their combined performances in the athletic realm and in the classroom. To be eligible for nomination, student-athletes must be sophomores both athletically and academically, hold a minimum 3.50 cumulative grade point average, and been a starter, or key reserve on their team.
The Bucs Citrus Conference Championship Softball team led the way with three Academic All-District selections. Sietske Drijvers wrapped up her Buccaneer career with a 3.91 GPA while earning 1st Team FCSAA All-State and 1st Team All-Citrus Conference honors on the field. Drijvers played in 64 games for the Bucs this season, hitting .347 while accounting for 116 runs with 54 driven in and 62 scored. Like Drijvers, Maddy Golka posted a 3.91 GPA in the classroom the past two years while playing in over 100 games for the Bucs. Golka was a 1st Team All-Conference choice for FSW, hitting .349 and driving in 31 runs for the Bucs this season. The third and final Bucs Softball player to earn the honors was fireballer Esmee Ames who was a 1st Team All-Conference and 2nd Team FCSAA All-State selection for the Bucs this season after going 21-6 with six saves on the season in the circle.
Jaehshon Thomas and Reis Jones become the first FSW Men's Basketball players in program history to earn the award after turning in stellar seasons both on the court and in the classroom. Thomas earned his degree from FSW with a 3.91 cumulative GPA the past two seasons and was equally as impressive on the court this year, putting up 16.0 points per game and shooting 53% from the field to earn 1st Team FCSAA All-State and 1st Team All-Citrus Conference honors. Joining him was teammate Reis Jones who paired a 3.69 GPA with 5.5 points per game and a 60% field goal percentage while also blocking the third most shots in a single season in program history with 48 this season.
Fresh off of an NJCAA National Championship in the Fall, the Bucs Volleyball program was represented on the list by Victoria Zibecchi and Izzy Collier. Zibecchi had a big sophomore season for the Bucs, posting a 3.67 GPA in the classroom while earning 1st Team FCSAA All-State and 1st Team All-Citrus Conference accolades on the court. Zibecchi was one of just five players in all of the NJCAA ranks this season to average over 3.0 kills per set and also hit over .300 on the year. Joining her was Collier, who was a two year starter for the Bucs, earning 1st Team FCSAA All-State and 1st Team All-Citrus Conference honors this season. She became just the second player in program history with over 200 career blocks and is the FSW all-time leader with 35 career solo blocks.
Last but certainly not least was FSW fan favorite Federica Lagana of the Bucs Women's Basketball team. Lagana graduated with a 3.85 cumulative GPA this spring after playing in 53 games for the Bucs the past two seasons. A menace on the defensive end, Lagana tied a program single game record with nine steals in a win over St. Petersburg this season and her 72 steals on the year were third most in a single season in program history.
Drijvers, Golka, Thomas, and Zibecchi have all been selected as finalists for the prestigious CSC Academic All-America Team award which will be announced in July.