Becoming the fifth Capital One Academic All-American in program history and third honoree in four seasons, Linfield College's Lisa Yamamoto joins a select group of model student-athletes who have achieved greatness both on the field of competition and within the scholastic realm.
On Tuesday, Yamamoto was named to the Division III Academic All-America second team as a designated player. The junior biology major from Carson City, Nev., maintains a cumulative grade point average of 3.78.
The Capital One Academic All-America teams for NCAA Division III were nominated, selected and announced by the College Sports Information Directors of America.
On the softball diamond, Yamamoto was a starter for a Linfield team that went 34-9, won the Northwest Conference regular season and postseason tournament titles, and reached the NCAA Division III regional playoffs. Individually, she was chosen as a third team all-West Region performer and was a second team all-conference selection. She hit .320 at the plate with nine doubles, two triples and three home runs.
Yamomoto joins graduated Linfield softball Academic All-Americans Karleigh Prestianni (2012), Jaydee Baxter (2011), Shelly Steinke (2006) and Liz Coburn (2004) on the prestigious list of standout student-athletes.
Wildcats coach Jackson Vaughan praised Yamamoto's effectiveness at balancing her dual roles as a high-achieving student and as prominent Division III athlete. “Lisa works unbelievably hard and has done a tremendous job of balancing a rigorous major with all the demands that playing softball at a high level requires. A couple of times a week, her lab work would overlap with softball practice, but she did a great job of juggling her academics while continuing to be an dependable player and a great teammate on our team.”
Yamamoto intends on spending the upcoming summer pursuing her interests in marine biology at California State University-Monterey Bay. She is participating in a 10-week summer Ocean Science Research Experiences internship program, conducting research in fish ecology.
