Lady Flames GPA Press Release

7/29/2019 Lady Flames GPA Press Release

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For Immediate Release: October 2, 2011

For More Information: Sloane Skinner, 859-533-9764

[email protected]

Lady Flames Turn Up the Heat

With only three years of experience, the Lady Flames have proved to be competitors on

and off the course.

The Lee University women’s golf program is fairly new to the scene, but they are

aggressively making up for lost time. Coach John Maupin was pleased when the Flames placed

10th

in the NAIA National Tournament. On top of that, their cumulative team GPA was a 3.864,

which allowed them to grab the NAIA National Scholar Team of the Year. As if that weren’t

enough, they were awarded the 2010-2011 NGCA All-Scholar Team GPA Award.

The All-Scholar Team Award is a terrific accomplishment because it includes both NAIA

and NCAA golf programs. In other words, the ladies had the highest GPA of any women’s teams

in the country. The Flames beat teams like Xavier University, University of Alabama and

Harvard.

This studious and athletic team is not satisfied. They hope for an even brighter future

both academically and on the course.

Just three years ago there was no women’s golf program at Lee. When Maupin was hired

in 2008 he worked aggressively to recruit players to build a women’s team. Current juniors

Kristin Bourg, Chelsea Rakestraw and Sloane Skinner have seen a huge transformation since the

founding days.

“It only gets easier,” said Skinner, “when we first stepped on the scene we had no

expectations for how the program would grow. We simply tried to play good golf and pave the

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way for future girls. Looking back, I can’t believe how far we’ve come. I definitely owe it to

Coach Maupin and my teammates. We are such a tight support group.”

The team also includes sophomores Geandra Almeida and Courtney Shelton and

freshman Madison Alexander. With such a young team, it looks as though they will only

improve with age.

Maupin is looking to expand his team for next year, in hopes they will carry a legacy of

good grades and good playing. He speaks highly of his team and believes he is very lucky to

have them as players. He expresses that this award shows that they are “student athletes” and not

just athletes. It is important to him that his players have an equal “balance” in life. Maupin has

athletic as well as academic goals for both of his teams in the player handbooks. He likes to

make sure his players put forth effort in school, but could not have imagined that they would be

such disciplined students.

When asked if he was surprised by the award he said, “It was a huge surprise. I knew

they had a great GPA, but didn’t think it would be such a huge deal.” He went on to say,

“Balancing time is huge because student athletes have so little of it. They have great time

management and organization.”

He added that he has been told the team’s academic award is one of the biggest

accomplishments the athletic department has ever had. The team is definitely making a name for

themselves.

Being a student athlete is very difficult and Kristin Bourg has been successfully handling

the role for almost three years.

She said, “Balancing school, practice, tournaments and workouts is very challenging.”

She explained that on average, the team misses ten days each semester. They have to work with



their teachers to make sure everyone is on the same page. Thankfully, most of the professors at

Lee are understanding and accommodate the women’s needs. This makes the task of catching up

on missed school days much easier for everyone.

She explained that although being a student athlete can be stressful, it is extremely

“rewarding”. She is thankful to play golf for such a great university.

“I’d like us to not settle with our achievements from the past season, but I’d really like to

place in the top 8 at nationals and win the conference tournament,” she went on to say, “I think

we can keep up the good grades and work hard in the classroom. Having success in the

classroom gives us more credibility.”

It is ironic that the Lady Flames have seen so much success in both the athletic and

academic arenas because golf is a game that requires dedication much like school work. One

must be meticulous and work hard to see results. Every day a person needs to put in the time,

even if he or she does not see dramatic results. Golf can be boring and extremely frustrating at

times, but when it finally clicks, a person is officially addicted to the game. Golf also teaches

people to be honest and trustworthy. It has been said that “golf is the game of life”. Who can

argue with that? There will be ups and downs, but in the end you will be rewarded for your

endurance.

The women on this team have learned a lot about life and themselves while playing the

game of golf. None of them have mastered it and sometimes they honestly hate it, yet they still

come back every day for more. They have dedication to their studies, and strive for perfection.

Following such a successful season could be daunting for some, but these young women are

ready to tackle whatever needs to get done, whether it is on the golf course or in the classroom.

The possibilities are endless for this team.



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Lady Flames GPA Press Release