C-USA Volleyball All-Academic Team Announced
11/20/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Nov. 20, 2008
Irving, Texas- Eleven volleyball student-athletes were named to the 2008 Conference USA All-Academic Team, as announced by the league office today. Tulane and Memphis each placed two representatives on the team while East Carolina, Houston, Marshall, Rice, Southern Miss, UAB and UCF had one apiece. The all-academic team consists of student-athletes that have earned a 3.2 cumulative grade point average or better and are a starter or key reserve on the volleyball team.
Four seniors, two juniors, and five sophomores make up the 2008 Conference USA Volleyball All-Academic Team. Among the 11 student-athletes seven were named ESPN the Magazine CoSIDA Academic All-District Teams earlier this season and six of them are repeat selections from last year's squad.
Headlining this year's squad is three-peat honoree, Ashley Petrinec of Southern Miss. Petrinec, also a two-time ESPN the Magazine CoSIDA Academic All-District VI selection, holds a 3.94 GPA as a double major in mathematics and computer science. On the court, the senior outside hitter leads the Golden Eagles in kills and ranks second on the team in digs.
Houston senior setter Kelsey King earns her second consecutive C-USA all-academic honor while majoring in psychology a 3.97 GPA. King was also named ESPN the Magazine CoSIDA Academic All-District VI and currently ranks fourth on the C-USA assists charts averaging 10.97 assists per game.
East Carolina junior Stephanie Turner and Marshall sophomore Elizabeth Fleming earn their first C-USA all-academic team honor. Turner, a health fitness specialist major, holds a 3.59 GPA while having led the Pirates through the regular season in kills (229), aces (27) and points (281.5). Fleming proved strengths on and off the court as she quarterbacked the Thundering Herd from the setter position while maintaining a perfect 4.0 GPA in International affairs. The South Bend, Ind., native dished out more than a thousand sets this season and was also named to the ESPN the Magazine CoSIDA Academic All-District II team.
Memphis is represented by two-time C-USA all-academic honoree Christine Bach and C-USA second teamer Emily Underwood. Bach is another 2008 ESPN the Magazine CoSIDA Academic All-District II selection is an international business major with a minor in French owning a 3.96 GPA. The redshirt sophomore also ranks second in the league in digs per game (4.5).
Underwood landed on the all-conference team after topping the league blocking charts with an average 1.52 blocks per game. The sophomore middle blocker is a psychology major with a minor in sociology and carries a 3.81 GPA.
C-USA Libero of the Year Tracey Lam of Rice was also named to both the C-USA All-Academic Team and ESPN the Magazine CoSIDA Academic All-District VI team. The sophomore is a triple major in economics, management and Asian studies with a 3.81 GPA.
Tulane, the C-USA regular season champions, landed two players on the all-academic team in junior libero Jenn Miller and sophomore middle blocker Lindsey Shepard. Miller, a repeat selection, was also named to the C-USA All-Conference Second Team and ranks sixth in C-USA in digs (377). The junior holds a 3.63 GPA as a business major. Shepard is a biomedical engineering major with a 3.85 GPA. The Albuquerque, N.M., native ranks second on the Tulane squad in total blocks (84).
Rounding out the list of C-USA All-Academic Team are repeat selections, Casey Dent of UAB and Jenny Heppert of UCF. Dent makes her second consecutive appearance on the All-Academic Team after being named to the C-USA all-conference first team and ESPN the Magazine CoSIDA Academic All-District IV team. The senior middle blocker ranks third in the league in hitting percentage (.389) while maintaining a 3.74 GPA as a business finance major.
Heppert closes out her collegiate career as both a two-time C-USA All-Academic Team and ESPN the Magazine CoSIDA Academic All-District III selection. The senior middle blocker has a perfect 4.0 GPA as a biology major and ranks sixth on the league's hitting percentage charts (.319) and 15th in services aces (27).
2008 C-USA VOLLEYBALL ALL-ACADEMIC TEAM
NAME, SCHOOL,CLASS, GPA, MAJOR
Stephanie Turner, East Carolina, Junior, 3.59, Health and Fitness Specialist
*Kelsey King, Houston, Senior, 3.97, Psychology
Elizabeth Fleming, Marshall, Sophomore, 4.00, International Affairs
*Christine Bach, Memphis, R-Sophomore, 3.96, International Business (Minor: French)
Emily Underwood, Memphis, Sophomore, 3.81, Psychology (Minor: Sociology)
Tracey Lam, Rice, Sophomore, 3.81, Economics, Management, Asian Studies
*Ashley Petrinec, Southern Miss, Senior, 3.94, Mathematics and Computer Science
*Jenn Miller, Tulane, Junior, 3.63, Business
Lindsey Shepard, Tulane, Sophomore, 3.85, Biomedical Engineering
*Casey Dent, UAB, Senior, 3.74, Business Finance
*Jenny Heppert, UCF, Senior, 4.00, Biology
*Repeat Selection