Gillespie, Attea Earn Big 12 Academic Honors
December 11, 2014 02:36 PM | General
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – A pair of West Virginia University student-athletes earned Big 12 academic honors, as cross country’s Kaitlyn Gillespie and volleyball’s Nikki Attea were named the Big 12 Scholar-Athletes of the Year for their respective sports on Thursday.
It marked the second consecutive season that a member of the WVU cross country team has earned the honor, while Attea is the first volleyball player in WVU history to earn the accolade since the Mountaineers joined the Big 12.
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| Kaitlyn Gillespie |
Gillespie, who was one of just three student-athletes to garner three All-America distinctions over her career at this year’s NCAA Women’s Cross Country Championship meet, joined former WVU runner Sarah Martinelli who earned the conference’s Scholar-Athlete of the Year award a season ago.
“Katie’s story is one of perseverance and diligence,” said coach Sean Cleary. “She missed 30 months of competition through the middle of her career due to injury only to return having not missed a beat in both the classroom and on the course.”
Gillespie finished 26th overall at this season’s NCAA Cross Country Championship, earning All-America accolades, and placed fifth overall at the 2014 Big 12 Championship to capture All-Big 12 honors.
“Having this honor to her credit is a tremendous achievement,” Cleary said. “She is one of only three student-athletes to have received the distinction of being a three-time All-American in cross country and now is honored as the Big 12 Scholar Athlete of the Year. It is outstanding.”
Throughout her career, Gillespie has maintained a 3.94 grade point average in exercise physiology.
A junior opposite, Attea was twice named to the Academic All-Big 12 Team and Academic All-Big 12 Rookie Team. She boasts a 3.63 grade-point average as a computer science major, earning mention on the Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll and Garett Ford Academic Honor Roll.
A native of East Amherst, New York, Attea was named to the 2014 AVCA All-Midwest Region team on Tuesday. She led the Mountaineers with a .269 attacking percentage and was second on the squad with 2.73 kills per set. Attea was also second in blocks with 76 and service aces with 22 on the year.
“It's such a great honor for Nikki to be representing WVU and the Big 12 conference as the Big 12 Volleyball Scholar-Athlete of the Year, yet another a WVU Volleyball program first,” said Mountaineer coach Jill Kramer. “The travel load that our team carries during the fall season is not an easy one, unmatched by any of our Big 12 opponents, and I am proud of our players for always approaching it with such great attitudes. They manage their time well on the road and communicate with their professors at a very high level. Nikki has always taken great pride in her academics and it's great to see her rewarded for it. She is committed to being a high achiever in both academics and athletics, a true definition of the term ‘student-athlete’ and a great role-model for aspiring collegiate volleyball student-athletes.”
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| Nikki Attea |
Attea registered four double-doubles on the season – two of which came against nationally ranked opponents. She set a new career-best with 25 kills in a five-set loss to Kansas State and hot for a career-high .538 clip against Robert Morris. Attea was named to the Niagara Invitational All-Tournament Team and was honored as a WVU Student-Athlete of the Week.
“This award also speaks volumes to the support our student-athletes receive from Academic Services,” said Kramer. “Without the support that Brady Rourke and Emily Patton have shown our student-athletes, an award like this would be very difficult to achieve.”
Student-athletes were selected as award recipients for their respective sports based on a vote of each sport’s head coaching group. Coaches were not permitted to vote for their own student-athletes.
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