This years finalist for the Honda Sport Award for Volleyball have been announced by Chris Voelz, the Executive Director of THE Collegiate Women Sports Awards (CWSA).
The four finalist for the award are Inky Ajanaku of Stanford, Ebony Nwanebu from the University of Texas, Kadie Rolfzen of the University of Nebraska and Sarah Wilhite from the University of Minnesota. All four chosen are members of 2016 NCAA Final Four teams.
Over the past 41 years the Honda Sports Award has been presented annually by the CWSA to the top women athletes in 12 NCAA-sanctioned sports. The finalist must signify “the best of the best in collegiate athletics.”
The winner of the award will become a finalist for the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year. The prestigious 2017 Honda Cup will be presented on June 26, 2017 in downtown Los Angeles and will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network.
The finalists and all nominees were chosen by a selection of coaches representing the AVCA. Every NCAA member institution, which is over 1,000 will have a vote in who wins the Honda Sports Award for Volleyball.
Inky Ajanaku, Stanford
Ajanaku is a three-time AVCA First Team All-American and a Senior CLASS Award First Team All-American. Ajanaku led the Pac-12 with 184 blocks and 1.52 blocks per set, to rank fifth and sixth nationally. The 184 blocks in her final season propelled her total to 619 total blocks in her career, making it a school record.
Ebony Nwanebu, Texas
Nwanebu is a two-time AVCA First-Team All-America. She ranked 25th in the nation with a .384 hitting percentage, also adding 3.73 kills per set.
Kadie Rolfzen, Nebraska
Rolfzen is a four-time AVCA All-American. She led Nebraska with 3.16 kills per set and 2.58 digs per set. Rolfzen ended her career with 1,564 kills and 1,255 digs, ranking sixth and seventh, respectively, on Nebraska’s all-time chart.
Sarah Wilhite, Minnesota
Wilhite was named as the Big Ten Player of the Year, espnW National Player of the Year and the AVCA National Player of the Year. She recorded 537 kills on the season, also adding 327 digs and 29 service aces.
Leave a Reply