ST. LOUIS, Mo. – Illinois State graduate student Jinyoung Yun, the MVC Women's Golfer of the Year, added another accolade to her growing list as she was named the Missouri Valley Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Year, announced by the MVC office on Wednesday afternoon, while Morgan Jones and Lory Paradis were each named to the All-Academic First Team.
Yun is just the second Redbird to be named the Scholar-Athlete of the Year, as Ali Schrock earned the honor in 2022 and 2024. The trio are the 35th, 36th, and 37th Redbirds to be named to the Academic First Team.
Yun, who has a 3.89 grade point average in her master's degree program of psychology of sport and physical activity, came into her final weekend of the season averaging 72.0 strokes per round, on pace to be a new Illinois State and Missouri Valley Conference single-season record. She was named the 2025 MVC Golfer of the Year, All-MVC, and was named to the MVC All-Tournament Team. This season she became just the third golfer in MVC history to earn Golfer of the Year honors in back-to-back seasons. She tied for fourth at the 2025 MVC Championship, and she has 18 rounds with a score at or under par. In 11 tournaments completed this year she has nine top-10 finishes with one medalist honors.
Jones, the 2025 MVC Newcomer of the Year, has a 4.00 grade point average in accountancy. She was also named All-MVC and was named to the MVC All-Tournament Team. Her scoring average of 73.1 is second on the team this season, and second in the MVC, behind only teammate Yun. Her scoring average is on pace to be the fourth-lowest in the history of the MVC. In 30 rounds coming into the NCAA Regional she had a dozen where her score was at or under par, while finishing in the top-10 in six of 11 events.
Paradis, who has a 4.00 graduate program grade point average in psychology of sport and physical activity, is in her first season with ISU. This season she averages 74.4 strokes per round, fourth-best on the Redbirds, with nine rounds at or under par during the year. She placed sixth at the 2025 MVC Championship behind rounds of 78, 71, an d72, and has a score in the 70's in 29-of-30 rounds during the season, including a season-low 70 on October 22 at The Clash at Boulder Creek.
The Redbirds are currently finishing the third round at the NCAA Columbus Regional, the program's third appearance in an NCAA Regional over the past four seasons.
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