Complete Release
For the second straight year, Harding University provides a GSC “Top Ten” female standout who has stamped a place in the school's athletic history.
Since stepping on the Searcy, Ark. campus in 2005-06, Alicia Williams has made the most of her opportunities on the court and in the classroom. The Greenville, Miss. native completed an impressive collegiate career in 2009, claiming the GSC West Division Player of the Year award. She also became just the 10th player in league history to be a four-time All-GSC First Team honoree. Williams posted a 15-5 record this season, leading the Lady Bisons to a berth in the GSC Tournament and an 18-9 overall record. For her efforts, she was also given the Berryhill Award which is handed to HU's top senior female student-athlete.
When the sun finally set on her four-year campaign, Williams became the school record-holder for career dual-match victories at No. 1 singles (70). It should not surprise anyone that David Elliot, who has been the head coach since the program's inception, believes Williams is “the best women's tennis player ever at Harding.”
Elliot proclaims that Williams “has a deep sense of work ethic and is highly motivated in academics and extracurricular activities.” Those comments are more than accurate when you consider that she completed her undergraduate academic career with a 3.86 overall G.P.A. and a perfect 4.00 G.P.A. in her Exercise Science major. Williams is a three-time member of the GSC All-Academic Team led by a unanimous selection this season. She is also a three-time choice of to the ESPN the Magazine® Academic All-District Team in which she was the top vote-getter in 2009. She was a 2008 inductee into the American Studies Institute and the Alpha Chi Honor Society as well as the Omicron Delta Kappa National Leadership Honor Society.
Williams' on-campus efforts included serving on the GSC Student-Athlete Advisory Committee for three years and being a student member of the Academic Misconduct Committee at Harding. Spearheading her off-campus resume is a stint as a team member of Harding's Spring Break Missions Trip to Orlando, Fla. She also volunteered at His House, a food pantry for the needy, and served as the Energy Group Leader for the Harding Student Impact Organization.
Williams carried her passion for the game of tennis to her hometown by working as an assistant teacher at the Cypress Hills Tennis Club in Greenville, Miss. She has also worked as a lab assistant for the United States Department of Agriculture and at OrthoArkansas as a physical therapy tech.
