Jones Awarded Prestigious Dorothy Hicks Scholarship

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Mercer's Allie Jones was one of ten Southern Conference student-athletes honored with a $2,000 postgraduate scholarship from the Southern Conference, the league announced on Wednesday evening.

Jones, the recipient of the Dorothy Hicks Scholarship, joins Dave Hart Scholarship recipient Grant Wollam (Wofford); Insurance Office of America Scholarship recipient Emma Kuntz (Furman); David Knight Scholarship recipient Kaley Tucker (UNC Greensboro); Bob McCloskey Insurance Scholarship recipients Megan Dunn (Wofford) and Omar Williams (Wofford); William V. Moore Scholarship presented by McMillan Pazdan Smith recipient Victoria Solheim (Western Carolina); and Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship recipients Avery Whitehead (Furman), Maria Esch (UNCG) and Caroline Orman (Samford).

The recipients are nominated by their schools and selected by the Southern Conference Graduate Scholar Committee. The scholarships, worth $2,000 each, are awarded to student-athletes about to receive their undergraduate degrees who intend to pursue advanced degrees in graduate or professional school. The student-athletes are evaluated on academics, athletics and community service.

"We are incredibly proud of Allie Jones for receiving the Dorothy Hicks Scholarship," head coach Stephanie DeFeo said. "Allie has worked hard for four years and absolutely deserves everything that she receives. She has been a 4.0 student and I know that this will help her when she gets into medical school. We're really excited for her and can't wait to see what her future holds."

Jones, a two-year captain for the Bears and native of Calhoun, Ga., has collected numerous academic and athletic honors and was an All-Southern Conference Second Team selection, the league office announced Wednesday afternoon. Jones has started each of Mercer's 44 contests as a senior and enters the 2021 SoCon Tournament with a .304 batting average (41-for-135) along with 24 runs scored and 17 RBI.

A 2018 SoCon All-Freshman team member in 2018, Jones earned the starting job in center field as a sophomore and was a Preseason All-SoCon selection. After batting .309 with 23 RBI, she was tabbed as a preseason second-team all-conference selection in the COVID-shortened 2020 season. Despite the season being shortened, the Calhoun native but was honored for her work in the classroom, being named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District first team and becoming just Mercer's second CoSIDA All-American when she was selected to the third team. A biochemistry and molecular biology major with a perfect 4.0 GPA, Jones is a two-time Academic All-SoCon selection. She has received recognition on the Dean's List and President's List all seven semesters to date.
Jones is member of the Phi Eta Honor Society and the American Chemical Society. She has participated in several research projects, ranging from traditional chemistry to a more biochemistry-focused investigation, and presented her findings at multiple conferences.

Off the field, Jones has been heavily involved in the Macon community, volunteering more than 1,700 hours of her time towards various causes. Jones has shadowed doctors, tutored, served as a softball camp instructor, assisted at a local food bank, volunteer with Habitat for Humanity and helped with a toy drive for Jay's Hope, an organization that aims to bring joy to children with cancer.

After her playing career is complete, she plans to attend either Mercer School of Medicine or Emory University in the fall with hopes of becoming a physician.

Catch Jones and fourth-seeded Bears in action at the SoCon Tournament on Wednesday. Mercer is set to battle No. 1 UNCG at 12:30 p.m. on ESPN+.

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Jones Awarded Prestigious Dorothy Hicks Scholarship

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Allie Jones

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