REPOSTED WITH PERMISSION - ARTICLE by Brian Ogden, Assistant Coordinator/Communications
STARKVILLE - Senior MaKayla Waldner was named to the All-SEC First Team as a midfielder, the league office announced on Sunday. The Dexter, Missouri, native was also named Co-Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
Waldner led all SEC midfielders with 10 goals and was second in points (21) in the regular season. She leads Mississippi State in goals, points, shots and shots on goal. The Bulldog captain broke rewrote the MSU record book in her final season.
She now holds the career game-winning goals record (11) and is second in school history in career goals (28), shots (200) and multi-goal games (5). Waldner is tied for third in career points (59). She is one of five players in program history to score 10 goals in a year and posted the 10th 20-point season on record.
Her 10 goals ranked fifth in the SEC this season, and the Bulldogs were undefeated when she scored, going 6-0-2 in such matches. She ranked among the top 100 players nationally in goals, goals per game, points and game-winning goals.
"I went into this season with a mindset of I have to leave everything out on the field," Waldner said. "This is my last chance to make a mark on Mississippi State, my last chance to be Bulldog. At the beginning of every season, I write down goals for myself and for the team. This year my goal was to be named All-SEC as a personal goal, and a team goal I had was to make the SEC Tournament. Having that constant reminder in my locker, gave me that extra edge."
Waldner has excelled off the field throughout her career as well and can now add Scholar-Athlete of the Year honors to her extensive resume. The senior mechanical engineering major shared the award with Alabama's Nealy Martin and Missouri's Sarah Luebbert. Waldner was also the Bulldogs' representative on the SEC Community Service Team this year.
She boasts a 3.60 GPA and has earned SEC Academic Honor Roll recognition every year of her career. She is a three-time President's List honoree and has made the Dean's List twice. Last year, she won the Newsom Award, given to the player with the highest GPA in each sport at MSU.
"Being the Scholar-Athlete makes me feel very proud," Waldner added. "It shows the hard work I've put into it, trusting my studies and doing what I know I have to do to get a degree. It means a lot to me to say that, as a mechanical engineering student, I was able to get a Scholar-Athlete award."
Waldner is just the fourth first-team selection in MSU history and the first since Catalina Perez in 2017. The last Bulldog to be named Scholar-Athlete of the Year was Mallory Eubanks in 2017 as well.
Waldner extends MSU's streak of having a student-athlete in at least one sport win the academic honor to three years. In that span, seven Bulldogs have done so in soccer, men's tennis, women's tennis, women's basketball and men's outdoor track and field.
The Bulldogs open the SEC Tournament at 3:30 p.m. CT on Sunday afternoon against Ole Miss. The match will air on SEC Network.
For more information on the Bulldog soccer program, follow on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by searching for "HailStateSOC."
Dexter, Missouri - T.S. Hill Middle School boys basketball schedule has been released. They were set to open at Bernie; however that game was cancelled due to a water leak. They play their first home game on Monday, November 4, 2019.
2019 Boys Basketball Schedule:
11/4 Richland (Essex) Jr. 6:00 p.m.
11/5 at Advance 6:00 pm
11/7 at Woodland 6:00 pm
11/11 at Bell City Jr. 6:00 pm
11/12 Puxico 6:00 pm
11/14 Bloomfield Jr. 6:00 pm
11/25 Poplar Bluff Junior 5:00 pm
11/26 at Jackson 5:30 pm
12/2 at Cape Jr 4:30 pm
12/5 Kennett 6:00 pm
12/10 Sikeston 5:30 pm
Dexter, Missouri - The DHS Fall Activities Senior Night was held at Charles Bland Stadium on Friday, October 25, 2019 prior to the start of the Malden vs Dexter football game.
Jaden Cato is the daughter of Tonya and Mark Cato.
She is a member of the DHS Girls Tennis team.
Her future plans are to attend Missouri State University and major in biological sciences.
Her most memorable moment is the bonds that we shared, bus rides, and all of the tik toks we made.
Dexter, Missouri - The DHS Fall Activities Senior Night was held at Charles Bland Stadium on Friday, October 25, 2019 prior to the start of the Malden vs Dexter football game.
Taylor Ward is the daughter of Brittany and Aaron Mathis.
She is a member of the DHS Girls Tennis team.
Taylor plans to get a Bachelor's degree in neonatology.
Her most memorable moment is the long bus rides that consisted of constant laughter, crazy stories, and getting to know each unique girl!
Dexter, Missouri - The DHS Fall Activities Senior Night was held at Charles Bland Stadium on Friday, October 25, 2019 prior to the start of the Malden vs Dexter football game.
Wyatt Parker is the son of BobbiKay Parker and Ron Anthony .
He is a member of the DHS Cross Country Team.
His future plans are to join the Army.
His most memorable moment is when Miller McLaughlin broke my wrist at practice.
