Feb. 18, 2010

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama first baseman Clay Jones was one of 30 senior baseball student-athletes named to the 2010 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award Watch List on Thursday morning.

To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence – classroom, character, community and competition.

An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School™, the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.

“Clay Jones has certainly done his part on and off the field to be one of the leaders of this year’s team,” Alabama head baseball coach Mitch Gaspard said. “He is a hard-working player and is definitely a middle of the lineup hitter, but more importantly he does the job in the classroom and in the community. He is the consummate student-athlete.”

Off the field, Jones sports a 3.48 grade point average in human performance exercise science (kinesiology). He was a member of the 2009 SEC Academic Honor Roll and was twice named to the UA Dean’s List. Jones and his Crimson Tide teammates logged more than 600 total hours of community service this fall, visiting local schools, nursing homes and retirement centers. 

On the field, he hit .336 with seven home runs and 37 RBI in 41 games as a junior. He was also one of UA’s top pinch hitters with a .571 (4-for-7) average with one home run and three RBI. He was named the Most Valuable Player of the Whataburger Classic.

The 2010 season marks the fourth for the baseball division of the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award, with former Alabama Academic All-American and All-American Emeel Salem winning the inaugural award in 2007.

ABOUT THE AWARD
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School™, the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award honors the attributes of senior student-athletes in four areas: classroom, community, character and competition. The award program is designed exclusively for college seniors who are utilizing their complete athletic eligibility, remaining committed to their university and pursuing the many rewards that a senior season can bring. Sportscaster Dick Enberg, Honorary Chairman of the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award, first conceived the idea of an award for seniors in 2001 in response to the growing trend of men’s basketball players leaving school early for the NBA. The award program has expanded the past two years to include a total of nine NCAA® Division I sports – football, men’s and women’s soccer, men’s ice hockey, men’s lacrosse, baseball and softball in addition to men’s and women’s basketball. The award is sponsored by Lowe’s, an official Corporate Partner of the NCAA®, and managed by Premier Sports Management. For more information, visit www.seniorCLASSaward.com.