Catawba's Thorne Named 2024 SAC Women's Basketball Scholar-Athlete of the Year

ROCK HILL, S.C. (TheSAC.com) – Catawba's Lyrik Thorne was voted the 2024 South Atlantic Conference Women's Basketball Scholar-Athlete of the Year, the Conference office announced Friday (April 12).

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.

The High Point, N.C. native holds a 3.81 grade point average while completing her master's in sports management. Thorne is a member of the National Society of Leadership and Success (NSLC), which is the nation's largest leadership honor society, and is a nine-time Catawba College Deans List honoree.

Thorne made history during her final campaign with the Catawba Indians as she was named the South Atlantic Conference Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year for the first time in SAC history. She became just the fifth player in conference history and the first in program history to earn the Player of the Year title in back-to-back seasons. Thorne continued to collect honors in the postseason, as she was named the Division II Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA) Southeast Region Player of the Year and was named to the D2CCA All-America First Team and the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) All-American Honorable Mention squad. Thorne scored 19.3 points per game, while leading Catawba to a SAC regular season title and its second consecutive year hosting the Southeast Regional as the top-ranked team.

Thorne wrapped up her Catawba career as the program's all-time leading scorer with 2,169 career points, ranking her fifth all-time in league history. Over her five seasons with the program, Thorne has collected an impressive list of honors, as she has been named a 2024 All-SAC First Team member, a 2023 World Exposure Report All-America Honorable Mention member, a 2023 D2CCA First Team All-Region member, the 2023 SAC Player of the Year, the 2023 Southeast Regional Most Outstanding Player, a 2023 Southeast Regional All-Tournament Team member, a 2023 Division II All-Tournament Team member, a 2023 All-SAC First Team member, a 2022 All-SAC Second Team member, a 2020 All-SAC Honorable Mention member, and a 2020 All-SAC Freshman Team member. During the 2022-23 season, she led her team to their first-ever Regional Championship and Final Four appearance in program history.

Off the court, Thorne has been extremely involved in her local community. She has taken on many roles, serving as a mentor to children at East Buchanon Middle School that look forward to playing sports in high school, aiding in building and cleaning affordable houses for low-income individuals with Habitat for Humanity, monitoring the safety of children at the Boys & Girls Club, managing stations at the Special Olympics, and assisting NASCAR spectators within the arena.

"Lyrik exemplifies all the attributes of a successful Division II student athlete" said Catawba College Athletic Director Michelle Caddigan. "She is a stellar student and a fierce competitor on the court. Her kindness shines through in all the service projects she has been involved with. We couldn't be more proud of how she represents Catawba College!!"

Women's Basketball Scholar-Athlete Finalists

Braelyn Wykle, Carson-Newman

Caitlyn Ross, UVA Wise

Emily Harman, Lenoir-Rhyne

Laney Beale, Wingate

Lauren Flowers, Lincoln Memorial

Maddie Gillie, Mars Hill

Lyrik Thorne, Catawba

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