Courtesy: Southland.org http://www.southland.org Central Arkansas junior Chloe Smith was selected to the CoSIDA/ESPN District Six All-Academic First-Team. The Southland received six selections in all.

FRISCO, Texas - The Southland Conference landed six selections on the 2009 Volleyball CoSIDA/ESPN District Six All-Academic teams. Central Arkansas junior Chloe Smith and Stephen F. Austin junior Laurel Kuepker lead the list of honorees as the league's first-team recipients. UCA sophomore Cristin Curl received second team honors and SFA senior Sydney Milburn was selected to the third team giving SFA and UCA two selections each. Northwestern State senior Yelena Enwere and Lamar senior Adrianne Meengs were selected to the third team. The Southland tied the Big 12 Conference for the lead with six selections.

Smith, a right side hitter from San Diego, Calif., ranks 18th in the nation and leads the Southland with 4.43 kills per set. She is also hitting .278 with 1.95 digs and 0.62 blocks per set. Smith ranks second on UCA's career kills list with 1,199. In the classroom, Smith has a 3.93 grade point average in digital filmmaking.

Curl, a libero from Amarillo, Texas, leads the Southland and ranks 52nd in the country with 4.75 digs per set. She has been named Southland defensive player of the week twice this year. Curl has a 3.83 GPA in business management.

It is the second consecutive year that Kuepker has been named to the squad, making the first team after being named to the second team in 2008. The Laporte, Ind., junior has split time at setter this year but has still managed to average 3.28 assists and 2.00 digs per set over 23 matches, despite being forced to sit out SFA's last seven matches with a hip injury. She was one of four players on any of the three combined teams to carry a 4.00 GPA, majoring in liberal studies.

Milburn also managed to make the team for the first time in her first year of eligibility after transferring to SFA before the 2008 season as a junior from Blinn College. Currently a senior, Milburn was named to the third team and carries a 3.88 GPA in biology. The native of Kingwood, Texas has seen time on the back row as a defensive specialist this year, averaging 1.63 digs per set over 23 matches, putting up a season high 17 digs in a win over McNeese State on October 3.

Enwere, an outside hitter from Stafford, Texas, has started all 20 matches for the Lady Demons and leads the team with 246 kills and ranks fifth in the Southland in kills per set (3.42). Enwere carries a 3.80 GPA in Health and Human Performance.

Meengs, a setter from Friendswood, Texas, holds a 3.86 GPA in business. This season Meengs is averaging 8.95 assists per set and has a .300 hitting pct., which ranks second in the Southland. She currently has 3,095 assists and 519 kills in her Lamar career. She currently is fifth all-time at LU in assists and first in kills by a setter.

The Academic All-America Teams program honors male and female student-athletes annually who have succeeded at the highest level on the playing field and in the classroom. Individuals are selected through voting by CoSIDA, a 2,000-member organization consisting of sports public relations professionals for colleges and universities in the United States and Canada.

The CoSIDA district covers six states, including Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. To be eligible, a student-athlete must be a starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.30 (on a scale of 4.00), have reached sophomore athletic and academic standing at his/her current institution and be nominated by his/her sports information director.