2011 Conference USA Volleyball All-Academic Team Announced
11/22/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Nov. 22, 2011
 Lisa Knecht  | |
Leading the 11-member squad are three Capital One Academic All-District selections: Stephanie Figueroa of UTEP, UCF's Tory McCuthcheon and Lauren Sears of Southern Miss. All three were unanimous selections to the C-USA All-Academic Team.
Sears carries a perfect 4.0 GPA in mathematics. The senior middle blocker leads the Golden Eagles in total blocks, hitting percentage and aces and ranks third on the team in kills. She is a three-time C-USA All-Academic Team, Commissioner's List and Academic Medal honoree. Sears has been named Academic All-District three times and has earned a spot on the President's List throughout her athletic career.
 Kelsea Seymour | |
Figueroa also sports a flawless 4.0 grade point average in multidisciplinary studies. The libero ranks sixth in the conference in digs per set and has posted double-digit dig performances in 27 of 30 contests this season. She was a C-USA Academic Medalist in 2010 and has been named C-USA Player of the Week twice this season and four times during her career.
McCutcheon boasts a 3.94 GPA as a biology ¬¬major and ranks second on the team in total blocks, averaging nearly one block per set, and has posted 16 matches with a .300 hitting percentage or better. The middle blocker has earned the C-USA Commissioner's Academic Medal and a spot on the Commissioner's Honor Roll in each of her seasons at UCF.
Stephanie Nwachukwu of Houston, a biochemistry major with a 3.89 GPA, makes her first appearance on the C-USA All-Academic Team. Nwachukwu is a two-time C-USA Academic Medal winner and a two-time Commissioner's Honor Roll member.
Memphis' Altrese Hawkins is a repeat pick for the All-Academic Team. She has a 3.66 GPA while double-majoring in biology and physiology, with a minor in Spanish. She leads her team and ranks second in C-USA with 4.37 kills per set. The junior is a three-year member of the Commissioner's Honor Roll and a two-time Academic Medal recipient.
Junior outside hitter Laurie McNamara represents Rice on the C-USA All-Academic Team. The sport management major has a 3.85 GPA and has earned her first All-Academic honor after claiming the C-USA Academic Medal and a spot on the Commissioner's Honor Roll last year. She also appears among the league's top 20 in blocks (0.79) and service aces per set (0.22).
SMU senior Dana Powell earned consecutive All-Academic Team nods. Powell maintains a 3.63 GPA as an accounting and advertising double major and is a two-time honorable mention AVCA All-American. She currently ranks third in SMU history in digs and fifth in kills. The outside hitter stands at No. 16 in the league in kills (2.97) and points (3.43) per set.
Diana Silva of Tulsa is a Commissioner's Honor Roll and Dean's List student with a 3.71 GPA in management information systems. The junior outside hitter appears on her first C-USA All-Academic Team. Silva was voted to the All-C-USA second team a year ago and has guided the 2011 team to its second consecutive C-USA regular season title and NCAA Championship. She currently ranks among the league's top 15 in kills (3.30) and digs (3.40) per set.
Two-time All-Academic selection Sam Serley of UAB rounds out the 11-member team. The junior middle blocker is a health care management and accounting double major with a 3.77 GPA. She ranks third in the league in hitting efficiency (.351) and blocks (1.31) per set plus was named C-USA Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 10. She has twice earned the C-USA Academic Medal and a spot on the Commissioner's Honor Roll.
Conference USA will announce the 2011 all-conference teams and individual award winners on Wednesday.
Below is a complete list of the 2011 C-USA All-Academic honorees:
NAME SCHOOL YEAR GPA MAJORStephanie Nwachukwu Houston Junior 3.89 Biochemistry*Altrese Hawkins Memphis RS Junior 3.66 Biology, Psychology/Spanish MinorLaurie McNamara Rice Junior 3.85 Sport Management*Dana Powell SMU Senior 3.63 Accounting/Advertising Double Major*Lauren Sears Southern Miss Senior 4.00 MathematicsLisa Knecht Southern Miss Senior 3.97 Exercise Science*Kelsea Seymour Southern Miss Senior 3.70 Physical Education LicensureDiana Silva Tulsa Junior 3.71 Management Information Systems*Sam Serley UAB Junior 3.77 Health Care Management/Accounting*Tory McCuthcheon UCF Junior 3.94 BiologyStephanie Figueroa UTEP Senior 4.00 Multidisciplinary Studies
*Repeat Selection