JACKSON - Northwest student-athletes continue to excel in both the arena and the classroom.  On Tuesday, three Ranger teams were recognized as tops academically in the Mississippi Association of Community Colleges Conference.

Northwest Mississippi Community College teams brought home MACCC Academic Team of the Year awards in Women's Tennis, Volleyball, and Women's Soccer.

Tennis head coach Ryan Mounce's team finished with the second highest team grade point average among all sports teams in the MACCC.  The ladies brought home a 3.85 GPA in the classroom while also qualifying for the National Junior College Athletic Association's national championship tournament in Sumter, South Carolina.

"I am so proud of this group of girls! Their dedication to the classroom is directly correlated to their success on the courts.  This group worked so hard for this and I am proud of them!," said the first-year coach of the Rangers.

Allison Burchyett's volleyball squad made it to the semifinals of the NJCAA Region 23 tournament on the court in November.  That same squad posted a 3.77 GPA on the year to top the conference in the classroom.

Burchyett echoed Mounce's sentiments when speaking about her team.  "I am so proud of all the hard work these young ladies put in this last school year in the classroom.  It is tremendously hard balancing academics and athletics, and these ladies did well in both," said the coach.

Back-to-back was the theme for the 2025 edition of head coach James Beattie's women's soccer program.  For the second year in a row they not only brought home an NJCAA Division II Women's Soccer Championship, but they also topped the MACCC in the classroom.  The squad's 3.73 team GPA topped all conference members, putting the bow on top of yet another very memorable season.

Beattie was plain-spoken about the honor, as if the accolades overwhelmed even him.  "Again, this group has done something that has only set the bar even higher!  I'm running out of things to say about this season and this team."  This news came as his recently-graduated midfielder, Emma Jensen, had just been named the CSC Academic All-America® Team Member of the Year - the highest athletic/academic award a college athlete can receive - earlier in the day.

Although they did not earn MACCC Academic Team of the Year accolades this season, every other Northwest team that competes in the NJCAA also finished with 3.0 GPAs or higher.  Women's golf led the way with a 3.76, followed by softball at 3.73, and men's golf with a 3.71.

Men's Tennis garnered a 3.44, while Northwest baseball posted a 3.34, followed by football at 3.16, and women's basketball at 3.15.  Men's basketball, with a 3.10, and men's soccer at 3.03, round out the academic highlights for the Rangers.

Under the guidance of athletic academic advisors Charlesy Kennedy and Tori Fugatt, Northwest student-athletes had a strong year in the classroom. A total of 196 Rangers earned recognition to the Fall 2025 Athletic Director's Honor Roll, with 157 being selected for the Spring 2026 semester.