East Lansing, Mich.– – Head coach Cathy George has announced the addition of three players that will join the Michigan State volleyball program for the 2017 season. Alyssa Chronowski (Munster, Ind.), Jamye Cox (Oregon, Ohio), and Meredith Norris (Owosso, Mich.) have all committed to play their collegiate volleyball in East Lansing.
The incoming class, all three of whom will enroll at MSU in the upcoming spring semester, are among the top 40 Prep Volleyball Senior Aces, and all have won significant team and individual honors throughout their scholastic and club careers.
“This is an incredibly talented, skilled and competitive class of athletes,” said head coach Cathy George, who is in her 12th season at Michigan State and 30th season overall. “This group will be an excellent complement to the players we will have returning to the roster in 2017, and we are excited to get them into the gym with us this spring.”
MSU will graduate four players from its current team, which is currently No. 15 in the national polls and owns a 21-5 record with three weeks in the regular season remaining. MSU loses two outside hitters (Chloe Reinig and Autumn Christenson), a middle blocker (Allyssah Fitterer) and a defensive specialist (Kristen Brashear) from this current team at the end of the season.
The three incoming players will immediately begin training sessions with the team in preparation for the 2017 season when classes begin in January.
Alyssa Chronowski
6-2 Outside Hitter Munster, Ind. / Munster Club: Ignite
No. 30 on the PrepVolleyball.com list of Senior Aces …
CLUB: Played for Tina Tinberg at Ignite Elite VBC in Crown Point, Indiana … 17 U Ignite Elite took fifth place at USA Volleyball nationals in 2016 and won the USA division at the USA Mideast Qualifier … Second-Place finish in the Great Lakes Power League Open 18s … 16U Epic United squad took first place at the Energy Recruit Me Tournament and third place in the premier division at AAU Nationals in 2015 … Named to the Energy “Recruit Me” All Tournament Team and the Great Lakes Region Windy City Power League All-Region Team in 2014… All-Region Team selection in the 2013 Windy City Power League …
HIGH SCHOOL : As a team captain and kill leader, lead Munster to a 27-10 record as a senior, winning a second sectional title and third consecutive Conference championship (twice undefeated in conference) … First team NCC Academic All-Conference and 2015 Indiana Coaches of Girls Sports Association (ICGSA) Academic All-State Honorable Mention … 2015 ICGSA North All-Star Team … Northwest Indiana All-Star Team pick in 2014 and 2015 … As a junior, earned the team’s Most Valuable Player honors and was the Ironman Award winner in 2014 and 2015 … Was also the team’s Most Improved Player selection as a sophomore … Three-time NCC All-Conference selection, earning First Team honors in 2015 and 2016 … ICGSA Junior North All-Star … Three-time letterwinner … Four-time Munster High School Scholar-Athlete Award recipient … Captained the freshman team in 2014 …
PERSONAL: Daughter of Lou and Joy Chronowski … Twin sister, Abigail, also played on the volleyball team at Munster … Honor Roll selection every semester … National Honor Society member …
Head Coach Cathy George: “Alyssa is extremely athletic with great size, leaping ability and quickness. Alyssa really blossomed over the last year and drew lots of attention, which was reflected in her Prep Volleyball rating this past spring. Her killer mentality is what initially drew us to her and is something we’ll look for when she suits up for the Green and White.”
Jamye Cox
5-3 Defensive Specialist/Libero Oregon, Ohio. / Saint Ursula Academy Club: Michigan Elite
2016 AVCA/ Under Armour First Team All-America … No. 40 on the PrepVolleyball.com list of Senior Aces … Libero on the USA Junior National Team in the summer of 2016, where she played in the USA NORECA finals … Earned All-Tournament Team honors at the 2015 High Performance championships when she played for the A1 USA Red team … 2016 USA Today and MaxPreps pre-season All-American … Named a First Team Prep Volleyball “Defensive Dandy,” in 2013 and 2014, honoring the nation’s top full-time defensive players … A Top 50 Junior, Sophomore 79, and Top 59 Freshman pick by Prep Volleyball … PrepVolleyball All-American in 2015.
CLUB: Played in 2015-16 for Michigan Elite and coach Neil Rucinski … Competed for Legacy Volleyball Club and coach Jennifer Cottrill in 2014-15 after six seasons at Toledo Volleyball Club …
HIGH SCHOOL : All-time digs leader at Saint Ursula Academy … First Team All-Ohio in her final three seasons, and Honorable Mention as a freshman in 2013 … Helped team to Sectional, District, and Regional championships in each of her first three years, and helped lead St. Ursula to the state Final Four in those years as well … Earned 2016 Three Rivers Athletic Conference (TRAC) Player of the Year and All-Conference selection and was also a First Team selection in District 7 … District 7 and TRAC Player of the Year in 2015 … Academic All-TRAC … 2016 Black and Gold Tournament MVP … … As a sophomore, earned First Team All-League, First Team All-District, First Team All-State (the only sophomore recognized in Division I) and was a 2014 USA Today Second Team All-American …
PERSONAL: Daughter of James and Tammy Cox …Father was a basketball letterwinner at TriState University … Sister, Ryann, plays volleyball at Bowling Green … Also has a younger sister, Kenady …
Head Coach Cathy George: > “Jamye has an incredibly high volleyball IQ and is extremely driven and competitive. She has an understanding of tactics and strategy that is well beyond her years. Her serve receive and defense have always stood out but her command on the court drew the attention of our coaching staff . Her play has provided her amazing opportunities to shine with USA volleyball, and those experiences have provided her a solid foundation for her transition to college volleyball.”
Meredith Norris
6-3 Outside Hitter Owosso, Mich./Corunna Club: Michigan Elite
2016 AVCA/ Under Armour First Team All-American … No. 25 on the Prep Volleyball list of Senior Aces … A Top 50 Junior, Sophomore 79, and Freshman 59 pick by Prep Volleyball … Max Preps, Prep Volleyball and USA Today 2016 pre-season All-American … AVCA Phenom in 2013, 2014 and 2015 … Competed in the USAV HP program each of the last five summers, including Holiday A1 camp as a Select level athlete … In 2016, led USAV A1 level Women’s Junior Team to a silver medal in the HP Championships, where she was named to the All Tournament team in the Women’s International Division …
CLUB: Played under club director Vince Muscat at Michigan Elite … Finished eighth at AAU Nationals with her U17 squad in the summer of 2016, after a 10th-place finish the year prior … Three time qualifier for USAV Nationals Open Division, Four-time AAU state championship … Named to the Sports Performance Presidents Day All-Tournament Team … Three-time JVA Watch List selection… Two-time JVA All Nation Team… PrepVolleyball.com First Team Club All-American in 2015 …
HIGH SCHOOL : Four year team captain and MVP … Recorded more than 3,000 kills and holds school records in kills, digs, and aces … 2016 State of Michigan Miss Volleyball finalist … Helped Corunna to three district championships (2013, 2014, 2016) …First Team All-Conference, All-Region, All-Area selection in each of her first three high school seasons … Class B First Team All-State pick in 2014 and 2015 … Lansing State Journal Dream Team selection in 2014 and 2015 and the paper’s Player of the Year selection in 2015 … Argus-Press Player of the Year in 2015 … MaxPreps High School All-American in 2015 … Set a Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) record with 56 kills vs. Goodrich in the 2015 District finals a year after notching 53 kills over the same school, also in the District finals, in 2014 … Owns four of the top five spots in single-match kills in state history.
PERSONAL: Daughter of Dr. Robert and Nicole Norris … Father is a 1997 graduate of the MSU College of Human Medicine and is a team physician for the MSU athletic department, while Nicole is the athletic director at Corunna High School … Both parents were athletes as undergrads at Alma College, where her father played basketball and her mother ran track … Has a younger sister, Elizabeth, who is also on the varsity team at Corunna … Member of the National Honor Society and will graduate among the top 10 in her class … Also played basketball for one year as a freshman, and is a three-year track & field letterwinner, earning All-Conference honors and was a state qualifier in the high jump …
Head Coach Cathy George: “Meredith has been playing volleyball a long, long time. She’s an incredibly well-rounded player who has experience in almost every position. Her 3,000 kills speak to her ability to terminate, but it is her overall skill set that drew our attention. Her experience with USA volleyball will aid her in a successful transition into the Big Ten.”
News courtesy of Michigan State Athletics.
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