A member of South Georgia State College’s (SGSC) men’s basketball team has been named a 2016 Arthur Ashe, Jr. Sports Scholar by the magazine Diverse: Issues In Higher Education.
Momodu Senghore, a 6’9″ redshirt freshman from Jonesboro, Ga., was a second team selection for the honor, which includes players from various NCAA Division I schools.
“This is a signal achievement for Momodu Senghore,” said SGSC President Dr. Virginia Carson. “It reflects great credit on him and also on our head basketball coach Cory Baldwin.”
During his time as head basketball coach, Baldwin has made academics a top priority among his players. He said he is excited about Senghore’s selection.
“I am very proud of Momodu,” said Baldwin. “He’s what you want a student athlete to be, which is to be a student first.”
Senghore finished the fall 2015 semester with a 3.83 grade point average and currently has a cumulative GPA of 3.47. He played in 17 games last season for the Hawks, shooting 46 percent from the field and 60 percent from the free throw line.
While at SGSC, Senghore’s academic concentration has been business administration. He plans to transfer to the College of Coastal Georgia to pursue his bachelor’s degree and to continue his basketball career.
Diverse: Issues In Higher Education sponsors the award. It is named for the late tennis star who exhibited a commitment to education as well as to the game of tennis. According to the magazine’s web site, the award “honor(s) undergraduate students who have excelled in the classroom as well as on the athletic field.” A “commitment to community service and student leadership” is also considered during the review of nominations.
– Submitted