AUSTIN, Texas – West Liberty University graduate student Audrey Tingle was honored today as a first-team NCAA Division II Academic All-American® and the 2021-22 NCAA Division II Academic All-American® of the Year for women’s basketball in voting by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).
A first-team All-Mountain East Conference and All-Atlantic Region selection, the stellar point guard ranked at or near the top of the national charts in multiple categories as a fifth-year starter for head coach Kyle Cooper. The West Lafayette, Ohio native was just as accomplished in the classroom, maintaining a perfect 4.00 grade-point average while pursuing her MBA on the hilltop after completing her undergraduate degree last year with a perfect 4.00 GPA in Speech Pathology and Audiology.
"From the moment Audrey arrived on campus, she has attacked everything in her life with a vision and drive that has been truly inspiring for her teammates and coaches," head coach Kyle Cooper said. "We feel so lucky to have had a front-row seat for Audrey's journey and are thrilled to see her receive this prestigious and well-deserved honor. Audrey is an incredible example of what you can achieve here at West Liberty University."
Tingle kept the national spotlight shining on the hilltop throughout her season-long assault on the NCAA record book. She finished the season with an NCAA Division II-record six triple-doubles and is tied for the most triple-doubles in a career with seven. In addition to her triple-double records, Tingle ranked No. 3 nationally with 19 double-doubles, averaging a double-double for the season with 14.1 points and 10.5 rebounds a night to go along with an MEC-best 7.1 assists/game.
The only NCAA woman at any level to rack up more than 200 assists and 300 rebounds during the regular season, Tingle ranked No. 2 nationally with 212 assists and was 12th in the nation with 314 rebounds despite standing just 5-6. The four-time MEC Player of the Week started and played in a school-record 132 games for the Black and Gold, ending her career with 1,241 points, 998 rebounds, 856 assists and 198 steals. The 856 assists are 8th in NCAA D2 history.
Tingle is the 13th West Liberty University basketball player to earn Academic All-America® honors and the fourth to be honored as the Academic All-American® of the Year. Tori Hansen was the 2011 College Division Academic All-American® of the Year for women’s basketball, an honor encompassing the Division II, Division III, NAIA and junior-college ranks. Dalton Bolon was the men's basketball Academic All-American® of the Year in 2020-21 with Dan Monteroso earning the honor for the 2017-18 academic year.
West Liberty's men's and women's basketball programs have now produced at least one NCAA Division II Academic All-American® in each of the last 10 years. In all, 22 Hilltopper student-athletes have been chosen as NCAA Division II Academic All-Americans® since the institution transitioned to NCAA membership in the mid-1990s.
Tingle is joined on the NCAA Division II Academic All-America® first-team unit by four seniors, including fellow All-MEC standout Sierra Kotchman of Fairmont State. Rounding out the first-team list are Bryanna Brown of Lincoln (Pa.), Maighan Hedge of Cameron (Okla.) and Denali Pinto from the Colorado School of Mines.
Eight of the 16 members of the Academic All-America® Division II women’s basketball teams sustain an unblemished 4.0 GPA in their undergraduate work or graduate school. The five members of the first team have an average GPA of 3.98, with the entire Division II team maintaining a collective average GPA of 3.93.
The Division II Academic All-America® program is being financially supported by the NCAA Division II national governance structure to assist CoSIDA with handling the awards fulfillment aspects for the 2021-22 Division II Academic All-America® program.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
NCAA Division II
2021-22 CoSIDA Academic All-America® Team
FIRST TEAM
Name School Yr. GPA Major
Bryanna Brown Lincoln (Pa.) Sr. 3.95 Finance
Maighan Hedge Cameron (Okla.) Sr. 3.97 Sports and Exercise Science
Sierra Kotchman Fairmont State Sr. 3.98 Business Administration
Denali Pinto Colorado Mines Sr. 3.99 Chemical Engineering
AUDREY TINGLE* WEST LIBERTY GR. 4.00 SPEECH PATH./AUDIOLOGY (UG)/MBA (G)
*-2021 CoSIDA Academic All-America of the Year Award
SECOND TEAM
Name School Yr. GPA Major
Makaila Cangé Lander (S.C.) Jr. 3.65 Biology
Kelsey Johnson Central Oklahoma Gr. 3.66 Family & Child Studies
Whitney Randall Fort Hays State Gr. 4.00 Health & Human Performance
Katie Titus Daemen (N.Y.) Sr. 3.90 Childhood / Special Education
Nikki Tucker Embry-Riddle (Fla.) Sr. 4.00 Aerospace Physiology
THIRD TEAM
Name School Yr. GPA Major
Kylie Hammer Wayne State (Mich.) Sr. 3.92 Elementary Education
Kassidy Malcolm Central Washington Gr. 3.83 Art Studies/Public Relations (UG)/Mgmt. (G)
Annie Roshak Ashland (Ohio) Jr. 3.85 Accounting
Kelsey Siemons Colorado Mesa Sr. 4.00 Biology
Amber Stevahn Minot State (Neb.) Sr. 4.00 Biology
Tennae Voliva Alaska-Anchorage Gr. 4.00 Clinical Psychology