Sept. 21, 2012

- Memphis' ALTRESE HAWKINS and SAM SERLEY of UAB have been named among 30 NCAA® women's volleyball candidates for the Senior CLASS Award.

To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence - community, classroom, character and competition. See below for a complete list of candidates. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School ®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.

In the classroom, Hawkins has been the definition of a student-athlete as she is majoring in Chemistry, Biology and Psychology. She also has Spanish minor. Even with three majors, Hawkins has a grade point average of 3.50. Named to the Dean's List five times, Hawkins has had a semester GPA over 3.0 seven times, including a perfect 4.0 in the 2009 spring semester. Hawkins has been on the Conference USA (C-USA) Commissioners Honor Roll all four years and earned the C-USA Commissioners Academic Medal twice (2008-09 and 2009-10). She was named to the C-USA's All-Academic Team in 2010 and 2011, and is on pace to graduate in May of 2013. She plans to attend medical school.

During her playing career, Hawkins has been a two-time captain of the Memphis volleyball team. Currently, she is the only captain on the 13-member team. She has proved to be a hard worker, as she finds time to have an off-campus job around her busy schedule while triple majoring at Memphis. Along with all of her athletic and academic awards, Hawkins also finds time to volunteer and do community service in Memphis. She has volunteered at many hospitals and has worked on numerous community service projects. The Schaumburg, Ill., native has mentored junior high girls, and she tutored elementary children as well as help promote health awareness for numerous issues, including heart disease, obesity, asthma and autism. She is a member of Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), which aids in her getting into the community. While attending the C-USA SAAC conference in Dallas she volunteered at the Children's Hospital in the Oncology Department.

She is a two-time first team All-Conference USA performer and was also named to the C-USA All-Freshman team in 2009. She earned American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) honorable mention All-American honors in both 2010 and 2011 and was named to the AVCA All-Midwest Region team in 2010. Her 4.40 kills per set average placed her 19th in the country. Hawkins has a career hitting percentage of .291, including a career-best .305 attack percentage in 2010. She was named to the COBRA Magazine Second Team All-National in 2009 before being named All-Southwest Region Performer in both 2010 and 2011. She has also won four tournament MVP awards.

Serley, a native of Nashville, Tenn., has put together an impressive career as a Blazer. The senior is a two-time AVCA All-American Honorable Mention, 2011 First Team All-Conference USA honoree, along with being named to the league's all-academic team back-to-back seasons.

A health care management major and accounting minor, Serley has been able to maintain an impressive 3.75 cumulative grade point average. Beyond her success in the classroom and on the court, Serley has spent countless hours giving back to the community through a variety of charitable avenues.

Serley is one of two Conference USA player selected as candidates, joined by Memphis' Altrese Hawkins.

The 2012 candidate class includes 16 American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-Americans from last season. Twenty-four of the 30 candidates have maintained a cumulative grade point average of 3.5 or better. One of the candidates was recognized by the College Sports Information Directors of America as a 2011 Capital One Academic All-American. The Senior CLASS Award winners will be announced during the 2012 NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Championship, which will take place December 13 and 15 in Louisville, Kentucky.

The candidate class will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans, who will select one candidate who best exemplify excellence in the four Cs of community, classroom, character and competition. 


For more information on all the candidates, visit seniorCLASSaward.com.

2012 NCAA® WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL SENIOR CLASS AWARD CANDIDATES
Lesli Akeo, Siena
Andrea Beck, Wake Forest
Alaina Bergsma, Oregon
Megan Bober, Creighton
Amy Braun, Northern Iowa
Danielle Carlson, Marquette
Karissa Cook, Stanford
Dana Cranston, Colorado State
Kasey Elswick, Tennessee-Martin
Ashley Frazier, Kentucky
Katie Fuller, Southern California
Krysta Gardner, Bethune-Cookman
Christiana Gray, Duke
Andrea Hannasch, San Diego State
ALTRESE HAWKINS, MEMPHIS
Rachel Iaquaniello, Eastern Michigan
Rachael Kidder, UCLA
Faimie Kingsley, Denver
Rachel Krabacher, Dayton
Alison Landwehr, Iowa State
Gina Mancuso, Nebraska
Lindsey Miller, Texas A&M
Jodi Purdy, Wyoming
Taylor Root, Valparaiso
Robin Rostratter, California
SAM SERLEY, UAB
Jamie Straube, Iowa State
Ariel Turner, Purdue
Kate Van Dyke, Georgia Southern
Breanne Van Every, Idaho State

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