NORTH NEWTON, Kan. - The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) released its annual list of Women's and Men's Basketball All-Americans yesterday, and a pair of Threshers saw their names selected. Abby Schmidt with the Thresher women's basketball team was able to earn a Third-Team All-American nod after her final year with the program. Jaylon Scott with the Thresher men's basketball team was able to cap off one of the best seasons individually and as a team by earning a First-Team All-American nod.
Schmidt becomes an overall three-time All-American with yesterday's announcement. She was able to earn Honorable Mention All-American status last season from both the NAIA and the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA). This season's Third-Team All-American award is the highest she reached in her career and becomes the first women's basketball player to earn a spot on one of the three teams since April Harpe was also a third-teamer in 2014-2015.
Schmidt finished her senior season with the second-most rebounds in the NAIA (355), fourth-most blocks (82), and was 11th in field-goal percentage (56.7%). The 6'3" center helped lead the Threshers to a 16-10 record and a second-place finish in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference. The team was able to earn a bid to the NAIA Women's Basketball National Championships, the first national tournament appearance in the program's history.
Becoming a Third-Team All-American highlights Schmidt's stellar career. Schmidt is a three-time defending KCAC Defensive Player of the Year, three-time All-KCAC First Team selection, and last season became the first CoSIDA Academic All-American in the history of not only the women's basketball program but all of Thresher women's athletics.
Schmidt closed her career with the second-most total points all-time in program history at 1,716. She also broke and established career records in free-throws made (496), total rebounds (1,399), total blocks (306), total double-doubles (65), and highest field-goal percentage (56.5%, 610/1,079). Her career rebound and block marks are also the top amongst all players in the history of current KCAC institutional members.
Jaylon Scott was able to earn a prestigious First-Team All-American honor from the NAIA. This is only the second-time in program history to have someone named to the First-Team, with the first being Mark Ediger in 1998-1999.
Scott led the Threshers in points, rebounds, and assists the entire season as they made their way down a journey of being one of the best teams in program history. He also finished the year as the NAIA's leader in defensive rebounds/game (9.876), second in total rebounds (337), 10th in steals (57), and 14th in assists (131).
Bethel was able to be ranked among the NAIA Top 25 the entire season in the first year that all NAIA schools were combined into one total division. Scott helped get the Threshers to an overall record of 21-7, only the fourth time in program history to collect a 20+ win season and first in program history to do so in consecutive seasons.
The Threshers were able to clinch the first KCAC regular-season championship since 2002-2003, the first postseason KCAC tournament championship in program history, and qualified for the NAIA Men's Basketball National Championships for the second time in program history.
Jaylon Scott put together outings of 29 and 25 points in Bethel's NAIA National Championship Opening Round victories over Voorhees (S.C.) and Northwestern (Iowa), helping pave the way to not only the first national tournament victories for the program but also their first-ever appearance n the Round of 16.
This First-Team All-American award highlights a year where Jaylon Scott was named the KCAC Player of the Year, the KCAC Defensive Player of the Year, and a unanimous All-KCAC First Team selection.
COMPLETE LIST OF NAIA MEN'S BASKETBALL ALL-AMERICANS
COMPLETE LIST OF NAIA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL ALL-AMERICANS
