March 4, 2010
IRVING, Texas - Six Aggies were among 47 student-athletes honored on the 2010 Academic All-Big 12 Conference Women's Basketball Team released on Thursday by the league office.
Senior Damitria Buchanan (Houston, Texas), senior Katrina Limbaha (Riga, Latvia), junior Maryann Baker (Dallas, Texas) and sophomore Kelsey Assarian (Naples, Fla.) were named to the first team, while sophomore Adaora Elonu (Houston, Texas) and sophomore Skylar Collins (Cedar Hill, Texas) earned second team recognition. A&M had the most academic honorees of all 12-member schools next to Nebraska and rival Texas.
Buchanan earned a spot on the first team for the second year in a row with an impressive 3.83 grade-point average in graduate coursework toward a master's degree in educational psychology with an emphasis in school counseling. She became the first A&M women's basketball player to graduate in three years with a bachelor's degree in psychology in May of 2009.
Limbaha garnered first-team honors for the third time of her career with a 3.75 GPA in international business. A two-time team Academic Award recipient, she has played in 70 career games with four starts for the Aggies.
Meanwhile, Baker and Assarian earned their first career nod on the first team. Baker holds a 3.48 GPA in sport management and Assarian a 3.52 GPA in industrial distributions. Elonu and Collins made the second team as allied health and sport management majors respectively.
Nominated by each institution's director of student-athlete support services and media relations offices, the women's basketball academic all-league squad consisted of 34 first-team members combined with 13 on the second team. First-team members have recorded a 3.20 or better GPA, while the second team are those with a 3.00 to 3.19 GPA.
To qualify student-athletes must maintain a 3.00 GPA or higher either cumulative or in the two previous semesters and have participated in 60 percent of her team's scheduled contests. Freshmen and transfers are not eligible in their first year of academic residence. Senior student-athletes who have participated for a minimum of two years and meet all the criteria except percent of participation are also eligible.