Friday, November 9, 2018

PORTLAND, Ore. – Sophomore setter Cate Whiting has been one of the driving forces behind Alaska’s volleyball resurgence, but she has not sacrificed excellence in the classroom for excellence on the court.

With her 3.97 cumulative grade point average as a civil engineering major, Whiting leads the list of 63 total selections to the 2018 Great Northwest Athletic Conference Volleyball All-Academic Team.

Whiting has played a key role in the Nanooks’ achieving their first winning overall and GNAC records since 2004. Ranking fifth in the GNAC with 9.93 assists per set, Whiting was named earlier this season as the SportsImports/AVCA Division II Player of the Week for an effort of 75 assists, 10 blocks, 12 kills and 20 digs in a pair of wins over Seattle Pacific on Oct. 4 and Saint Martin’s on Oct. 6.

Whiting was one of 16 student-athletes on the All-Academic Team with a cumulative GPA of 3.80 or higher and six with GPAs or 3.90 or better. Joining Whiting on the latter list is Alaska sophomore Lahra Weber, Central Washington senior Kaycee O’Brien, Concordia junior Jessica Wheeler, Seattle Pacific sophomore Gabi Stegemoller and Western Oregon junior Morgan Haskett.

This year’s Volleyball All-Academic Team includes 32 repeat selections, including 14 players who are making their appearances on the squad. The three-time honoree list includes Alaska Anchorage seniors Chrisalyn Johnson and Taylor Noga, Central Washington seniors Sarah Joffs and Madison Weg, Concordia senior Britt Beyer, Montana State Billings senior Miranda McConnell, Northwest Nazarene senior Shayli Siegfreid, Saint Martin’s seniors Rachel Gondrezick and Megan Vernoy, Seattle Pacific seniors Amanda Ganete and Symone Tran, Western Oregon senior Leila Holt and Western Washington seniors Michaela Hall and Abby Phelps.

Central Washington leads all programs with eight All-Academic Team selections. Northwest Nazarene, Seattle Pacific and Western Washington each had seven selections.

Selections to the GNAC All-Academic Teams must be of sophomore standing or greater, be in their second year at the nominating school, have a minimum of a 3.20 cumulative grade point average at their current institution and be on the roster for their team the full season.

2018 GNAC VOLLEYBALL ALL-ACADEMIC TEAM