Avery Williams: soccer standout, NCAA Elite 90 winner chooses one more year at Columbus State

August 13, 2025

Columbus State University graduate student Avery Williams has earned one of collegiate athletics’ highest honors, the NCAA Elite 90 Award. The award recognizes the student-athlete with the highest cumulative GPA among all national championship competitors in their sport, and Williams claimed it last season during the Division II Women’s Soccer Final Four.

Williams graduated in May 2025 with a bachelor’s degree in biology, maintaining a perfect academic record while competing at the highest level of Division II soccer. She also completed two summer internships at the Mayo Clinic and is a member of both Columbus State’s Competitive Premedical Studies Program and its Servant Leadership Program.

Justin Hay, Columbus State’s athletics director, called the award a rare and prestigious honor, highlighting Williams’ ability to balance excellence in the classroom with success on the field. 

Her path toward medicine is deeply personal. Williams’ mother battled breast cancer for years, inspiring her daughter to pursue a healthcare career.

“Although I already knew I wanted to be a doctor, walking alongside her through that journey changed everything,” Williams said. “She showed me that medicine is not just about science. It’s about people and the profound difference kindness can make in someone’s life.”

 

Williams presents on her research during her internship with the Mayo Clinic Florida's Department of Radiation Oncology.

Originally from St. Augustine, Florida, Williams first chose Columbus State for soccer. Over time, the relationships she built with her professors, coaches and teammates made the decision to remain at Columbus State to pursue a master’s degree an easy one.

Because of injuries during her freshman and sophomore years, Williams still has NCAA eligibility. She made the difficult choice to delay medical school to play one more season while pursuing her master’s in public health degree.

“I’ve been surrounded by people who believed in me, challenged me and supported me,” she said. “From the biology faculty to [Head Soccer] Coach Jay [Entlich], to Dr. [Dan] Holt in [the Competitive Premedical Studies Program], I’m incredibly grateful. Columbus has started to feel like home, and I’m not ready to leave just yet.”

Williams’ full player profile is available on the CSU Athletics’ website.

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Averi Morton of the Office of Strategic Communication + Marketing submitted this article for publication.

Media contact: Michael Tullier, APR, Executive Director of Strategic Communication + Marketing, 706.507.8729, mtullier@columbusstate.edu