-- Story provided by Hope College Athletics --
Photo Credit: Lynne Powe
Claire Baguley, a junior with the national champion Hope College women's basketball team, is the recipient of the Elite 90 award for the 2022 NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championship.
Baguley, majoring in environmental science with a concentration on chemistry, currently carries a 3.97 grade point average. The junior from Ada, Michigan (Forest Hills Central HS) was presented with the award prior to the Flying Dutch's NCAA semifinal on Thursday in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Baguley is Hope's first women's basketball recipient of the award and fifth overall recipient. She is a contributor off the bench for the MIAA co-champions, averaging a career-high 16.1 minutes per game and 6.8 points in 31 games.
Baguley joins swimmer Chelsea Wiese (2012), volleyball's Jayne Kessel (2013 and 2014). and cross country's Michelle Kerr (2015).
The Elite 90, an award founded by the NCAA, recognizes the true essence of the student-athlete by honoring the individual who has reached the pinnacle of competition at the national championship level in his or her sport, while also achieving the highest academic standard among his or her peers. The Elite 90 is presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade-point average participating at the finals site for each of the NCAA's championships.
Eligible student-athletes are sophomores or above academically who have participated in a sport for at least two years with their school. All ties are broken by the number of credits completed.
For more information on this year's Elite 90 award winners, log on to https://www.ncaa.com/elite-90.
