Volleyball Places Eight on Academic All-MAC Team
12/5/2016 4:27:00โฏPM | Women's Volleyball
CLEVELAND, Ohio โ Kent State had eight student-athletes named to the 2016 Volleyball Academic All-Mid-American Conference Team, the conference office announced on Monday (Dec. 5).ย Senior Drew Norberg, juniors Kelsey Bittinger, Challen Geraghty, Amber Gerdeman, and Brittney Jakscht, sophomores Sam Jones and Lexi Mantas and redshirt freshman Darby Connors were among the 78 student-athletes to receive Academic All-MAC honors.
The Academic All-MAC Team honors student-athletes who have excelled in athletics and academics. To qualify, a student-athlete must have at least a 3.20 cumulative GPA and have participated in at least 50 percent of the contests for that particular sport. First-year students and junior college transfers in their first year of residence are not eligible for the award.
Four of the Golden Flashes' honorees โ Bittinger, Geraghty, Jakscht and Norberg โrepeated Academic All-MAC honors from last season. Kent State is one of only two schools with two student-athletes named both All-MAC First Team and Academic All-MAC, as Bittinger and Geraghty earned both accolades for the second year in a row.
Bittinger made Kent State volleyball history this season as the first player to total 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs in her first three collegiate seasons and is just the fourth member of the 1,000-1,000 club. The outside hitter earned All-MAC First Team accolades after ranking third in the conference in both kills per set (3.55) and points per set (4.01). Additionally, Bittinger posted a conference-high 13 double-doubles and led all MAC non-liberos with 370 digs and 3.19 digs per set. The Strongsville, Ohio native was selected as the MAC Female Scholar-Athlete of the Week twice, which is the maximum number of honors a student-athlete can earn during a season, and was named CoSIDA Academic All-District for the second year in a row to garner consideration for the Academic All-America Team, which will be announced on Thursday.
Connors played in 17 matches and made 4 starts. She had 96 kills (2.13/set) on the season, which included a career-high 19 in a win over Coppin State.
Geraghty was once again among the national leaders in digs per set, ranking fourth at 5.53 digs per set. Her 669 total digs are second on Kent State's single-season list and ranked third nationally heading into the NCAA Tournament. The four-time MAC East Defensive Player of the Week selection was the only Flash to appear in all 121 sets and provided consistent play in the back. Geraghty led the MAC with a .979 reception percentage and collected at least 15 digs in every match.
Gerdeman played in 22 matches and made 15 starts. She posted 115 kills (1.53/set) and 45 total blocks (0.60/set) on the season. The Leipsic, Ohio native found great success late in the season, averaging 2.10 kills and 0.80 blocks per set over the final five matches. Gerdeman posted, and then matched, her career-high in both kills and blocks during the stretch.
Jakscht saw action in 25 matches and made 8 starts. Part of the team's leadership core, she was second on the team in assists (334) and assists per set (4.70). Jakscht ranks 10 in Kent State history with 5.91 assists per set for her career.
Jones played in 25 matches and made 6 starts. Named to the Comfort Inn-vitational All-Tournament Team, she totaled 146 digs (2.00 per set). Jones posted double-digit digs four times, which included a career-high 14 in a win over Coppin State.
Mantas had a breakthrough season and played in 29 matches with 12 starts. After going in-and-out of the rotation during the non-conference season, she grew into a role as one of the Flashes' top options at the pin and finished third on the team with 237 kills (2.32/set). Mantas posted double-figure kills in 11 matches, including each of the final 9 matches for an average of 3.20 kills per set.
Norberg played in 23 matches and made 21 starts. She was a more integral part of Kent State's attack, as she had a team-high .259 hitting percentage and was second on the team with averages of 3.12 points, 2.59 kills and 0.74 blocks per set. Norberg posted double-digit kills in 13 matches, which included a career-high 19 at Evansville.
2016 Volleyball Academic All-MAC Team (Kent State honorees)
Kelsey Bittinger, Junior
Darby Connors, Redshirt Freshman
Challen Geraghty, Junior
Amber Gerdeman, Junior
Brittney Jakscht, Junior
Sam Jones, Sophomore
Lexi Mantas, Sophomore
Drew Norberg, Senior
