BENNINGTON, Vt. — On Friday, the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) released its 2016 Zag Sports Division III Academic Honor Roll to recognize tremendous success in the classroom with three junior student-athletes on the list hailing from Southern Vermont College: Emily Lesure (Cheshire, Mass.), Lauren Nesshoever (Chittenden, Vt.), and Mel Orrell (Gloucester, Mass.).

The three Mountaineers, who were all captains for the Southern Vermont women's lacrosse team this past spring, represented SVC which was one of 149 institutions across the country to land players on the 2016 DIII Honor Roll. To be eligible for the accolade, student-athletes must be a junior or higher and have a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.50 following the spring semester.

"It's such a tremendous honor to our program to have our three captains selected as members of the 2016 IWLCA DIII Academic Honor Roll," commented SVC second-year head coach Thomas L. Otero. "This will set a high standard for other athletes at Southern Vermont College and goes on to show that participation in athletics has a direct correlation with academic success."

Lesure and Orrell are both in Southern Vermont's Radiologic Sciences program while Nesshoever studies Biological Sciences. The trio also garnered a spot on the 2016 New England Collegiate Conference Spring Academic All-Conference Team for their educational excellence as Nesshoever was additionally selected as SVC's 2016 Mountaineer Female Scholar Athlete of the Year.

"These three players have shown to be leaders in the classroom as well as on the field," Otero continued. "Their work ethic, time management skills, and strong desire to succeed will follow them long after graduation."

Friday's laurels are the first from the IWLCA for the young Southern Vermont program as Lesure, Nesshoever and Orrell are the first Mountaineers to meet both the class and GPA requirements for the Honor Roll. To see a full list of the award winners, visit http://www.iwlca.org/news_article/show/674429?referrer_id=2508983#Div 3.

– #LetsGoSVC –