GREENWOOD, Ind. -- The College Sports Communicators (CSC) released the Academic All-American honorees for the sports of soccer and women's volleyball in recent weeks, and Vanguard Athletics had 15 All-District awardees this fall.  In addition, VU men's soccer forward Adan Alvarado made the All-American Third Team, the first Lion to make the All-American list since Melissa Akullu was named to the First Team in 2023.  Alvarado becomes the 13th Academic All-American in department history and the first from the men's soccer program.
 
The CSC (formerly known as College Sports Information Directors Association, COSDIA) Academic All-American program began in 1952 and has selected over 44,000 student-athletics for the honor since then.  It is the longest-running, and one of the premier awards, across all levels of collegiate athletics.   The student-athletes must have performed at an elite level on the field and in the classroom during the season.  A nominee must have at least a 3.50 GPA, be at least a sophomore academically and athletically, and meet certain athletic criteria that relate to specific sports.  For soccer and volleyball, a player must have competed in 90% of an institution's games or started in 66% of the contests.
 
Those who meet the criteria make the Academic All-District category.  For the Lions, the following players made the 2025 fall semester All-District list:
 

Women's Soccer

Rachel Penick	Sr.	Business Administration	San Diego, Calif.
Kaitlyn Currier	Jr.	Nursing	Corona, Calif.
Lily Fama	So.	Pre-Nursing	Henderson, Nev.
Avery Hanhauser	So.	Accounting	Spring Branch, Texas
Hannah Caira	So.	Kinesiology	Laguna Hills, Calif.
Abby Grabowski	Sr.	Business Administration	Mission Viejo, Calif.

 

Men's Soccer

Adan Alvarado	So.	Undeclared	Montclair, Calif.
Aidan Hay	Gr.	Organizational Psychology	Palos Verdes, Calif.
Slater Hammer	Sr.	Kinesiology	Huntington Beach, Calif.
Robert Ronco	Sr.	Communications	San Diego, Calif.
Shaun Im	So.	Undeclared	Lakewood, Calif.

 

Women's Volleyball

Morgan Cole	Sr.	Liberal Studies	Bakersfield, Calif.
Kate Fagundes	So.	Kinesiology	El Dorado Hills, Calif.
Kayla Robinson	Jr.	Business Administration	Thousand Oaks, Calif.
Macy Kavanaugh	Jr.	Business	Wrightwood, Calif.

Those who hold accomplishments that are truly elite on and off the field are placed in a voting committee and CSC members vote on the national ballot.  Alvarado joins the following VU student-athletes who received an All-American recognition:
 

VU CSC Academic All-American Team Selections

Melissa Akullu	First Team	2023-24 Women's Basketball
Keili Dorn	First Team	2022 Women's Track & Field	VU Release
Isaiah Lee	First Team	2022 Baseball	VU Release
Amber Alexander	First Team & Player of the Year	2017-18 Women's Basketball	VU Release
Erica Wadell	First Team	2017 Women's Soccer	VU Release
Brittney Boggs	First Team	2015 Softball	VU Release
Taylor Belmont	Second Team	2013-14 Women's Basketball	VU Release
Megan Williams	Second Team	2013 Women's Track & Field
Esther Timmermans	First Team	2012-13 Women's Basketball	VU Release
Brandon Young	First Team	2012 Baseball	VU Release
Gabriela Bergmanova	First Team	2012 At-Large (Tennis)
Rachel Bomgren	Second Team	2007 Softball