Catawba's Rusher Selected as Women's Soccer Scholar-Athlete of the Year

ROCK HILL, S.C. (TheSAC.com) – Catawba College's Lillie Rusher was voted as the 2024 South Atlantic Conference Women's Soccer Scholar-Athlete of the Year, the conference announced today.

The South Atlantic Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Year award is presented annually to one student-athlete in each of the Conference's championship sports and is voted on by the SAC's Faculty Athletic Representatives Committee. The winners are selected based on their achievements in academics, athletics, service and leadership.

Rusher, a senior from Salisbury, N.C., was just named a First Team Academic All-American by the College Sports Communicators. Rusher is a three-time recipient of the SAC Commissioner's Honor Roll and has also earned Dean's List at Catawba three times. She was twice named to the Catawba Presidential Honor Roll and a three-time member of the Phi Epsilon Honor Society. She has had creative work published in the Catawba College Literary Journal: The Arrowhead each of the past three years. She earned the Academy for Teaching West Scholarship four times and earned the Hurley Scholarship for Abroad Travel once.

On the field, Rusher was a Third Team All-Conference performer as a junior and earned Second Team honors this fall where she was also selected as the SAC Defensive Player of the Week once. She had four goals and six assists with four game-winning goals in 17 matches, all starts. She guided the Catawba Indians to the NCAA Tournament where they earned a First Round win over Flagler. A season ago, she started all 23 matches and helped Catawba advance to the NCAA Round of 16. Catawba has reached the NCAA Tournament in each of her four years with the program.  

Off the field, Rusher is committed to service. She has twice been Co-President of the North Carolina Association of Educators as a student and has served as a National Society of Leadership and Success Member three years. She has volunteered as a Recreational Soccer Coach for the Catawba Soccer Academy each of her four years on campus. She has also spent time as an Editor for the Catawba College literary journal, a volunteer reader at Sacred Heart School and on the Catawba College Women's Soccer Leadership Team.  

2024 Women's Soccer Scholar-Athlete Finalists

Lillie Rusher, Catawba

Carla Humera, Mars Hill

Evan O'Leary, Lenoir-Rhyne

Haley Faucette, Wingate

Savannah Fields, Carson-Newman