FRISCO, Texas – Nearly a full month after playing her final collegiate basketball game, University of the Incarnate Word senior forward Celia Garcia Paunero continues to garner recognition for her outstanding performance both on and off the court. Wednesday, she was tabbed by the league office for Southland Conference First Team All-Academic honors.
 
"Celia continues to amaze me on and off the court," Head Coach Christy Smith said. "Her ability to serve in the classroom, around campus and in the community is inspiring, especially considering that she only began learning to speak English a few years ago. I'm extremely proud of her accomplishments and we're excited to see where her athletic and academic talents take her."
 
Wednesday's announcement comes just three weeks after Garcia Paunero landed a spot on the SLC All-Defensive Team and secured Second Team All-Southland accolades.
 
The Valladolid, Spain native led UIW to its first victories in program history over Houston Baptist, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and Sam Houston. She also helped the Cardinals to their first season-sweep of Nicholls. Garcia Paunero guided UIW to seven league victories, equaling the number of Southland Conference wins the program had over its first three years of transition to NCAA Division I combined.
 
Garcia Paunero was a workhorse for the Cardinals all season long, turning in 18 double-doubles (sixth nationally), including 11 double-doubles in conference play. She was the only player in the league to grab 20 rebounds in a game, had three 20-20 performances and was named Southland Conference Player of the Week twice. Garcia Paunero led the SLC with 11.6 boards per game (fifth nationally). She finished the season in the top-15 in the Southland in defensive rebounding (first), minutes played (third), free throw percentage (third), scoring (fifth), offensive rebounding (seventh), three-point field goals made (eighth) and blocked shots (ninth).
 
Garcia Paunero was the first UIW player in 26 years to average a double-double for a season. She was the first Cardinal in program history named to an All-Southland Team and the first since 2012-13 to land a spot on an All-Defensive Team. In conference play, Garcia Paunero averaged 17.2 points, 12.3 boards, 1.9 assists, 1.3 blocks and 1.0 steals per contest.
 
As gifted as she is athletically, Garcia Paunero is even more remarkable away from the court. She holds a 3.89 GPA in Psychology, with a minor in Kinesiology. Even more impressive, Garcia Paunero only began learning to speak English less than four years ago when she came to the United States to pursue a collegiate basketball career. Garcia Paunero made the Dean's list every semester and is a Spanish tutor at the UIW Learning Center. She participated in 12 community service projects this season, totaling a team-high 79 community service hours.
 
2016-17 Southland Women's Basketball All-Academic First Team

Name	School	Class	GPA	Major/Minor
Suzzy Dimba	Abilene Christian	Sr.	3.40	Management
Maggie Proffitt	Central Arkansas	Sr.	3.29	Exercise Science
Beatrice Attura	Northwestern State	Sr.	3.94	Business Administration
Celia Garcia Paunero	UIW	Sr.	3.89	Psychology/Kinesiology
Sydney Shelstead	Abilene Christian	Sr.	3.84	Engineering

 
2016-17 Southland Women's Basketball All-Academic Second Team

Name	School	Class	GPA	Major
Kiandra Bowers	Lamar	Sr.	3.73	Communication
Cassidy Barrios	Nicholls	So.	3.795	Accounting
Heidi Byrd	Houston Baptist	Sr.	3.92	Biology
Brianna Mullins	Central Arkansas	Sr.	3.52	Nursing
Brittany Mbamalu	A&M-Corpus Christi	Gr.	3.62	M.A. Public Admin./Criminal Justice

 
STAY TUNED
 
Next season the Cardinals will be eligible for postseason play and the UIW women's basketball coaching staff is determined to have the program ready to compete for a Southland Conference Championship immediately.
 
For the most up-to-date information on UIW Athletics visit uiwcardinals.com. Be sure to follow UIW Athletics on Twitter @UIWAthletics and like UIW Athletics on Facebook at UIW Athletics.