Michelle Young

Classroom

Michelle Young is on pace to graduate this spring with a 3.87 cumulative grade-point average.  The elementary education major, was a First-Team MVC Scholar-Athlete selection as a junior after earning Second-Team honors her sophomore year.  Young has earned a spot on the Bradley AD Honor Roll all seven semesters and received the MVC Commissioner’s Academic Excellence Award last year. In addition, she was on the MVC Honor Roll as a junior and is a two-time MVC Scholar-Athlete of the Week selection during her career.  Young is a four-time Bradley Scholar-Athlete of the Week honoree, including three times this season.

Character

A recipient of the MVC’s Leadership and Service Award in Feb. 2013, Young has served on Bradley’s Student-Athlete Advisory Council each of the past three years. In addition to her work on the council, Young has served on Bradley’s Ethnic Diversity Athletics Committee. She also has helped mentor area youth through the team’s pen pal program.

Community

Young has been active throughout Central Illinois volunteering with numerous area organizations in addition to assisting with on-campus projects through her involvement with the Braves Council. Some of her volunteer work includes helping with activities at walks to raise money for ALS, multiple sclerosis and Down syndrome. She also has volunteered at Children’s Courage Camp to help children deal with grief. Young has spoken to area youth at the Friendship House about good health and the importance of staying in school and has spoken at Bradley’s annual student-athlete day. She has tutored first-grade students in English in addition to her work the team’s pen pal program. Young has volunteered at Loaves and Fish to help feed those in need, and her off-campus activities include time at the South Side Mission, whose mission is to feed, house, clothe and teach those in need. On campus, she has volunteered for Late Night BU to help provide alcohol-free sources of late-night entertainment for Bradley University students. She has also volunteered at various campus events to help raise money for area community service organizations.

Competition

An honorable mention All-Missouri Valley Conference choice last year as a junior, Young led the team and was seventh in the MVC with a 14.3 ppg average—the highest season scoring average by a Bradley player since 2001-02.  After leading the MVC in made free throws as a junior, she currently leads the Valley again this season in makes from the charity stripe and is fourth in the league in free throw percentage.  Young is third in the MVC in steals per game (2.4) and is closing in on Bradley’s career top in both made free throws and steals.  She tied the Bradley single-game scoring record with 38 points at Columbia this year and leads the team in scoring at 13.8 points per contest. The sixth player in program history to earn All-Conference and MVC Scholar-Athlete honors in the same season, she was the fifth Bradley player to score 400 or more points and come away with 55 or more steals in a season last year and currently ranks 20th in school history with 933 career points.  She looks to become just the second player in program history to lead the team in both scoring and steals in two different seasons.