SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Samford women’s soccer midfielder Virginia McNeill has been named the General Shale Southern Conference Student-Athlete of the Week for competition held Nov. 2-8, the league office announced Wednesday.

McNeill played a key role in the Bulldogs’ 2-0 record last week as Samford defeated both Furman and ETSU in its SoCon Championship run in Johnson City, Tenn. McNeill started both SoCon tournament matches and logged a total of 171 minutes of game action for an average of 85.5 minutes per contest. She played all 90 minutes in the Bulldogs’ 2-1 victory over Furman in the semifinals and then 81 minutes against host ETSU in the championship game. For her efforts, McNeill was named to the 11-member SoCon All-Tournament Team and earned the first-ever Pinnacle Award for women’s soccer, which is awarded to the player possessing the highest GPA among championship-eligible student-athletes on the championship-winning team.

In the classroom, McNeill boasts a 3.88 grade point average as a childhood/special education major.

The General Shale Southern Conference Student-Athlete of the Week recognizes student-athletes that hold a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.3 and whose sport is currently in-season. Nominees must have also completed at least one full academic year at their respective institutions.

Also nominated for SoCon Student-Athlete of the Week: Briana Allmon (ETSU, volleyball) and Tori Penrod (Mercer, volleyball).

General Shale SoCon Student-Athletes of the Week

Sept. 7: Frank Lara, Furman, Men’s Cross Country

Sept. 14: Jay Broom, VMI, Men’s Cross Country

Sept. 21: Tori Penrod, Mercer, Volleyball

Sept. 28: Derrick Craine, Chattanooga, Football

Oct. 5:    Anna Maddox, Samford, Women’s Soccer

Oct. 12:  Maddie Clark, Mercer, Women’s Soccer

Oct. 19:  Samantha Espy, The Citadel, Volleyball

Oct. 26:  Myles Pierce, The Citadel, Football

Nov. 2:   David Marvin, Wofford, Football

Nov. 9:   Virginia McNeill, Samford, Women’s Soccer

-www.SoConSports.com-