RICHARDSON, Texas (June 16, 2020) – Lubbock Christian University's Maddi Chitsey (women's basketball) was named the female recipient of the 2020 Lone Star Conference Fred Jacoby Academic Athlete of the Year presented by Barnes & Noble College.  The award was voted by the league's sports information directors.
 
Chitsey joined male recipient Alex Shillow (Texas A&M-Commerce) as honorees of the award bearing the name of Jacoby, the long-time LSC commissioner who passed away in March 2008.  The nominees included the Academic Player of the Year in each sport as selected during the year.
 
The Exercise Sports Science major, Chitsey picked up LSC Academic Player of the Year honors for women's basketball with a 3.94 GPA, and last week was recognized by the LSC as LCU's female Scholar-Athlete award winner.  Chitsey, a senior from Wall, Texas, adds to her collection of honors this season. This season alone, she has also named to the WBCA and D2CCA All-America Team, All-Texas Team (Dave Campbell's Texas Basketball), All-South Central Team, as the South Central Region Player of the Year (D2CCA), LSC Athletic Performance Team member and she was the first player in Lone Star Conference history to claim the conference's Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and Academic Player of the Year honors in the same season. The returning D2CCA All-Region Selection is best known for her overtime three-pointer in LCU's 2019 National Championship victory over Southwestern Oklahoma State, which led to All-Elite Eight Tournament Honors. She led LCU in scoring (13.5), ranking eighth in the LSC. Chitsey also ranked fourth in the LSC in field goal percentage (46.7%), sixth in blocks (58) and blocks per game (1.9), seventh in field goals made (154) and defensive rebounds per game (4.8) and 10th in free-throw percentage (74.8%). She ranked second on the LCU squad with a per-game plus/minus rate of +16.9 (+17.5 in conference) and is part of a Lady Chaps defense that finished the season leading the nation holding opponents to a 31.7% shooting mark. Chitsey was a LSC All-Tournament Team selection, helping LCU to a LSC Championship title in March.
 
With the 2019-20 campaign serving as LCU's first season of all-sports membership in the Lone Star Conference, the honor is the first received by a LCU student-athlete.  Finishing second as a finalist for the honor was LCU women's soccer's Haley Knesek. The 4.00 Exercise Science graduate was a D2CCA First Team All-Region selection, First Team All-LSC selection and Lone Star Conference Forward of the Year as a senior. She set career highs in points with 31, scoring a team-high 12 goals and assisting seven others, helping lead the Lady Chaps to a program best 13 wins during the 2019 season. 
 
Maddi Chitsey's 2019-20 Awards
Lone Star Conference Fred Jacoby Academic Female Athlete of the Year (all sports)
Lone Star Conference Scholar-Athlete Award (all sports)
Lone Star Conference Women's Basketball Academic Player of the Year
WBCA Women's Basketball All-America Team
D2CCA Women's Basketball All-America Team
Dave Campbell's Texas Basketball's Women's Basketball All-Texas Team
D2CCA South Central Region Player of the Year
D2CCA All-South Central Region Team
Lone Star Conference Athletic Performance Team (all-sports)
Lone Star Conference Women's Basketball Player of the Year
Lone Star Conference Women's Basketball Defensive Player of the Year
Lone Star Conference Women's Basketball's All-Tournament Team
 
 
LSC Fred Jacoby Academic Athletes of the Year 
2020      Alex Shillow, Texas A&M-Commerce (football)                         
Maddi Chitsey, Lubbock Christian (basketball)
2019      Ezra Bagwell, Eastern New Mexico (track and field)
Greta Lazzarotto, Midwestern State (tennis)
2018      Dillon Vaughan, West Texas A&M (football)
Kami Norton, Angelo State (track and field)
2017      Turner Pool, Texas A&M-Commerce (XC, track and field)
Kami Norton, Angelo State (track and field)
2016      David Goggin, Angelo State (baseball)
Katie MacLeay, Angelo State (volleyball)
2015      David Goggin, Angelo State (baseball)
Ewa Zaborowska, Harding (track and field)
2014      Dustin Vaughan, West Texas A&M (football) 
Laura Iwuchukwu, West Texas A&M (volleyball)
2013      Dustin Vaughan, West Texas A&M (football)
Bailey Vrazel, Texas Woman's (softball)
2012      Zack Cohen, Angelo State (baseball)
Bailey Vrazel, Texas Woman's (softball)
2011      Kirk Jewasko, Incarnate Word (baseball)
Lauren Thedford, West Texas A&M (volleyball)
2010      Brad Rutherford, Abilene Christian (baseball)
Lauren Craig, Midwestern State (softball)
2009      Andrew Foshee, Central Oklahoma (baseball)
Emily Brister, West Texas A&M (basketball)
2008      Tyler Cooper, West Texas A&M (basketball)
Emily Brister, West Texas A&M (basketball)