KANSAS CITY, MO. – Iowa Wesleyan College ranked among the leaders nationally in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) when the governing body released its list of Daktronics-NAIA Volleyball Scholar-Athletes recently.
A total of six IWC volleyball players were named national NAIA Scholar-Athletes. Receiving the award were seniors Katie Leidl (Esterhazy, Saskatchewan) and Brittany Richardson (Benton, Ill.) and juniors Elizabeth Hemman (St. Peters, Mo.), Katie Jammer (Green Bay, Wis.), B.J. Wagy (Cedar Rapids, Iowa) and Kendra Zimmerman (Green Bay, Wis.).
Nominated by each institution’s head coach, a student-athlete must maintain a minimum grade point average of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale and have achieved junior academic status to qualify for the award. A total of 303 volleyball players across the NAIA received the award this year, including 26 from the Midwest Collegiate Conference.
IWC finished tops among MCC schools for most student-athletes receiving the award and tied three other schools for the third-most Scholar-Athletes across the NAIA. Carroll (Mont.) College had eight players receive the award and Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) University had seven players named Scholar-Athletes. Briar Cliff (Iowa) University, Hastings (Neb.) College and Tabor (Kan.) College joined Iowa Wesleyan with six members of their teams receiving the award. A total of 130 schools placed at one player named an NAIA Scholar-Athlete for volleyball.
The Tiger volleyball team finished 16-14 this season, including a 3-5 mark in the MCC. IWC finished with a winning record for the first time since 2005 and also posted its best finish in conference play in four years. Erika Candler completed her fourth season as head coach and resigned after the season to spend time with her newborn child. A search for her replacement is currently ongoing.
For more information regarding the IWC volleyball program or any of the Tiger athletic teams, contact sports information director Adam Glatczak (319-385-6306 phone; 319-385-6384 FAX; aglatczak@iwc.edu e-mail) or log on to IWC's athletics web site at www.iwc.edu/athletics.
