STARKVILLE, Miss. – Twelve Linfield softball players have been recognized by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association for smarts, as announced Thursday by the organization.

As a club, Linfield ranked 20th among Division III program with a combined grade point average of 3.419. The top academic club was Northwestern (Minn.), which posted a total grade point average of 3.694.

The following Wildcats, listed with major, received NFCA All-America Scholar-Athlete accolades:

• Sami Keim – Elementary Education
• Shelby VandeBergh (Jr., Beaverton, Ore.) – Business
• Kim Chase – Athletic Training
• Jaydee Baxter – Exercise Science
• Kayla Hubrich – Exercise Science
• Kristin Herren – Creative Writing
• Rachelle Ridout (Sr., Montesano, Wash.) – Education/Mathematics
• Hannah Muller – Health Education
• Claire Velaski – Exercise Science
• Alex Hartmann – Finance
• Katy Brosig (Jr., Forest Grove, Ore.) – Mathematics/Education
• Ashley Garcia (Jr., Beaverton, Ore.) – Chemistry

Individual awards were given to any player (submitted by her coach) who achieved a 3.50 grade point average or higher during the 2010-11 academic year.