NATCHITOCHES—Another accolade has rolled in for Northwestern State's fantastic freshman Vernell Atamah.

After taking home the Southland Conference Freshman of the Year honor on the court, she proved she is just as strong off it, garnering Second Team Academic All-SLC honors.

On the court, the native of Mesquite, Texas, had one of the most successful freshman campaigns in NSU women's basketball history.

She is the first NSU player to be named conference freshman of the year since Janelle Perez in 2013.

Atamah helped guide the Demons to a 16-16 overall record with a 12-8 mark in league play, the best season NSU has had in nearly a decade, as well as a berth in the WNIT.

It is the third straight season NSU has had at least one player on the academic all-SLC team, which includes Sharna Ayres, who was on the postseason team in 2023-24.

In the classroom, Atamah posted a GPA of 3.643 GPA in the time-consuming major of nursing, showing she is excellent at balancing both dominating on and off the court.

Atamah's 444 total points and 220 rebounds were fifth all-time in school history among freshmen, one of only two in NSU women's basketball history who can say that (Joskeen Garner is the other).

"I am incredibly proud of Vernell for her dedication and hard work," head coach Anna Nimz said. "She embodies the quote 'How you do anything is how you do everything.' She works hard to have success in all she does."

In the Southland statistics, she finished in the top six in both points and rebounds per contest, averaging 14.6 points and 7.5 rebounds per contest during league play.

Nationally, her six double-doubles finished in the top 10 among freshmen in the NCAA.

Perhaps her biggest game came in a Jan. 16 victory over in-state rival New Orleans, scoring a season-high 29 points and grabbing 11 rebounds, as well as recording three steals in a Demons 83-66 victory, which helped earn her SLC Player of the Week.

That performance came in the stretch of 15 consecutive contests in double figures, as well as one of three double-doubles in a span of five games.

Atamah, who started every game this season, finished in the top three on the team in 16 offensive categories.

She aims to help NSU make it even a step further after being a huge reason for the big leap from 2023-24 to 2024-25.