Duke Places ACC-Leading Six On
ACC All-Academic Volleyball Team
February 23, 2010
DURHAM, N.C. – The Duke volleyball team placed an ACC-leading six student-athletes of the ACC All-Academic Volleyball Team, as announced by at the Atlantic Coast Conference on Tuesday.
Representing Duke on the academic squad were senior and First Team Academic All-America selection Rachael Moss, junior Claire Smalzer, sophomores Kellie Catanach, Sophia Dunworth and Amanda Robertson and freshman Christiana Gray. To qualify for selection to the ACC All-Academic team, student-athletes must have earned at least a 3.0 grade-point average during the previous fall semester and have maintained at least a 3.0 GPA for their careers.
That group has helped Duke not only reach the NCAA Tournament for five consecutive seasons, but also helped the team capture the AVCA Team Academic Award three times in the past four years. The Duke volleyball team posted a 3.522 team GPA during the fall semester, which was the highest of any team at Duke during that semester.
Moss, a 5-10 outside hitter, recently wrapped a four-year career that included four All-ACC selections, three appearances on the AVCA All-America Honorable Mention squad and two straight ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America citations. Moss was voted a First Team Academic All-America member as a senior after posting a 3.95 GPA with a major in Political Science. She also finished her career ranked third all-time at Duke in career kills and fourth in both digs and service aces.
Smalzer, a 5-10 libero, anchored Duke’s defense again as a junior, leading the team with 441 digs. Behind her effort, Duke held opponents to an ACC-low .160 hitting percentage and surrendered the fewest kills in the conference. A Biological Anthropology major, Smalzer boasts a 3.19 GPA and is a repeat selection to the ACC All-Academic squad.
Catanach, a 6-2 sophomore, was one of the top setters in the ACC again as a sophomore and directed a Duke offense that led the conference in kills and assists. In addition to earning AVCA All-America Honorable Mention honors, she also dished out a career-high 28 service aces and 104 kills along with 217 digs and 65 blocks. Catanach has maintained a 3.116 GPA in her first two years at Duke and is an All-ACC Second Team choice.
Dunworth, a 6-1 sophomore, made her second straight appearance on the All-ACC Academic Volleyball Team after posting a 3.83 GPA. On the court, she set career highs with a .283 hitting percentage and an average of 2.59 kills per set. Despite taking 43 fewer attacks as a sophomore, she matched her freshman total of 295 kills.
Robertson, a 6-3 sophomore, was the third member of Duke’s sophomore class to appear on the All-ACC Academic squad. With a GPA of 3.33, Robertson became a major contributor on the court in her second season, posting 195 kills, 61 blocks and 155 digs. She appeared in all 33 matches while starting 21.
Gray, a 6-5 freshman, emerged as not only one of the top freshmen in the ACC, but was also just one of just six freshmen to make the ACC All-Academic Volleyball Team. While leading Duke with a .314 hitting percentage, Gray contributed 200 kills and 113 blocks while starting 32 of Duke’s 33 matches. Gray posted a 3.50 GPA in her first semester at Duke.
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