Former LaFayette High School and current Shorter University volleyball standout Leslie Welch joined teammate Jessica Cooper on the Capital One Academic All-America College Division Volleyball Team, which was announced on Monday by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

The Academic All-America honors come on the heels of each player being named Academic All-District selections for the College Division of District 2 in November. Both Cooper and Welch were named to the second team.

Welch, a junior, is a two-time Southern States Athletic Conference All-Academic selection and possesses a perfect 4.0 GPA in Psychology. Welch enjoyed her best season in a Lady Hawk uniform this past fall with 207 kills, 113 total blocks and 23 digs.

Cooper, a senior, boasts a 3.89 grade point average as an Early Childhood Education major. The Grant, Ala., native was the SSAC East Division Player of the Year and a third team NAIA All-America selection.

Cooper also earned a place on the SSAC All-Academic team for the second straight year and was a 2011 NAIA Scholar-Athlete.

Shorter had a total of four players named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District team last month as juniors Jordan Corder and Loren Olive joined Cooper and Welch on the academic honor squad.