Bagrou and Lawrence Sweep SoCon Athlete of the Year Honors

HILTON HEAD, S.C. – For just the second time in league history, first time since 1990-91, the Southern Conference Male and Female Athlete of the Year honors are going to the same institution. Mercer has swept the annual awards as men's soccer forward Will Bagrou and women's basketball guard Kahlia Lawrence were named the 2018 SoCon Male and Female Athletes of the Year, as announced by the league office on Tuesday morning. Bagrou and Lawrence were both drafted to continue their respective careers in the 2018 MLS Draft and WNBA Draft.

Bagrou became the program's first-ever student-athlete to garner SoCon Athlete of the Year in 2017, as well as becoming the first men's soccer player to take home the distinguished honor. Bagrou now joins higher ranks in the conference as just the ninth player in SoCon history to earn back-to-back athlete of the year honors since 1947-48. Bagrou joins the company of Dick Groat (Duke), Jerry West (West Virginia) and most notably Stephen Curry (Davidson).

Bagrou put a stamp on his legacy during his senior campaign, becoming Mercer's first-ever MLS Draft selection, taken by Sporting Kansas City with the 75^th overall pick. The Utah native tallied a SoCon-best 27 points this past season, scoring 12 goals and recording three assists. Most notably, Bagrou aided the Bears in claiming their second consecutive SoCon Tournament Title and NCAA Tournament berth.

Bagrou earned All-SoCon First Team honors in each of his four seasons with the Bears and added USC All-South Region honors to his resume for the third time in his career this past season. The senior forward finished third in career goals (37) at Mercer, career points (90) and finished tied fifth for career assists with 16.

Lawrence is the first Mercer female student-athlete to be named Athlete of the Year, solidifying her prestigious career. The Georgia native is the eighth women's basketball player since 1989-90 to claim the award and first since Taylor Hall (Chattanooga) did so in 2013-14.

Lawrence etched her name further in the Mercer record books after becoming the second player in program history to be drafted in the WNBA Draft, taken by the Minnesota Lynx with the 24^th overall pick. Lawrence was later traded to the Las Vegas Aces in the third round. Lawrence is the second student-athlete drafted from the SoCon to the WNBA and is the highest drafted player in league history.

The Columbus, Ga., native led Mercer to its first SoCon Tournament title and NCAA Division I Tournament berth as a senior while earning SoCon Player of the Year for a record-breaking third consecutive season. Lawrence concluded the season averaging a SoCon-best 19.3 points per game, while pulling down 5.1 rebounds and dishing out 2.1 assists per game.

The senior guard finished her career with 2,275 points, ranking third in Mercer and SoCon history, after averaging 17.2 points per game over four seasons. Lawrence also snuck into the top-10 in career rebounds at Mercer with 696 total boards. The 2018 SoCon Tournament Most Outstanding Player averaged 25.0 points per game during the Bears' tournament run this season.

Lawrence led Mercer to three straight SoCon regular season titles dating back to the 2015-16 season. She is the two-time defending Georgia Women's College Player of the Year and earned All-SoCon First Team honors three times in her career as well.

The Athlete of the Year Awards are selected annually by the Southern Conference athletics directors and a media member representing each conference school. The award recognizes athletic achievement, academic performance and civic involvement. Prior to 1990-91, the award was selected solely by members of the Southern Conference Sports Media Association. Beginning in 1991-92, the men's award was named after the late Bob Waters, who was Western Carolina's head football coach from 1969-88.

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Bagrou and Lawrence Sweep SoCon Athlete of the Year Honors

Players Mentioned

Will Bagrou

Kahlia Lawrence

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