Little Rock Student-Athletes Complete Another Successful Academic Semester
Little Rock student-athletes once again posted another stellar performance in the classroom during the fall 2020 semester, finishing the fall term with a department GPA of 3.30. It extends the Trojans impressive streak of semesters above a 3.00 to 17-straight as the department boasts an overall cumulative GPA of 3.34.
“I’m very proud of the efforts our student-athletes continue to make to ensure they are prioritizing their efforts in the classroom as well as in competition,” said Director of Athletics George Lee. “This was another very unconventional semester as we dealt with new and different ways of instruction, postponements and adjustments of competition schedules, constant testing and other unforeseen challenges. I express my appreciation to our coaches for ensuring academics remained a top priority as well as our academic staff for their adaptability and hard work to aid all of our Trojan student-athletes.”
An impressive 73.9 percent of Little Rock’s 264 student-athletes finished the fall 2020 semester with a 3.00 GPA or higher with 70 achieving a perfect 4.00 GPA. Additionally, 12 of Little Rock’s 15 programs finished with a team GPA of 3.00 this past fall, six of which were during the heart of their competition seasons.
Once again, women’s golf led the charge with a combined team GPA of 3.958 as all five golfers finished with a GPA of 3.80 or higher and four with a perfect 4.00.
They were followed by soccer’s 3.739 team GPA as 25 of the 27 players on the roster finished with a 3.00 GPA or higher (92.6 percent) and 14 notched a 4.00 during the fall, tied for the most in the department.
Volleyball’s 3.654 average ranked third as 14 Trojans were at a 3.00 or above (87.5 percent) with six finishing with a 4.00. Men’s golf was right behind at a 3.653 as eight of nine golfers (88.9 percent) were above a 3.00 with four 4.00s among the squad.
Swimming and diving checked in with a 3.516 as 82.9 percent of its 35 student-athletes made the 3.00 threshold with 14 boasting a 4.00, tied with soccer for the most in the department. Baseball followed with a team GPA of 3.370 with 30 if its 36 student-athletes (83.3 percent) making a 3.00 or better and eight joining the 4.00 club.
Women’s cross country finished with a 3.325 team GPA during its competition season while the women’s track and field program as a whole notched a 3.130 mark as a team with 27 of its 42 student-athletes (64.3 percent) reaching a 3.00 or higher with seven on the 4.00 list. Women’s basketball closed the fall with a 3.201 as 73.3 percent of the squad reached a 3.00 and a pair were at a perfect 4.00.
Wrestling (3.034) and men’s cross country (3.014) rounded out the list of programs that reached a team GPA of 3.00 during the fall semester as the Trojan wrestlers had 25 of its 35 student-athletes (71.4 percent) at a 3.00 or higher with five on the 4.00 list for the semester.
The academic honors continued what has become a major focus for Trojan athletics. Over the past year, six different Trojan athletic programs earned academic recognition by their respective national organizations while a handful of Little Rock student-athletes achieved individual academic recognition.
