Hagglund named Pac-12 Volleyball Scholar-Athlete of the Year
WALNUT CREEK, Calif. - USC’s Natalie Hagglund was named the Pac-12 Scholar-Athlete of the Year for women’s volleyball, Commissioner Larry Scott announced today. The award, which is presented in each of the 22 sports that Conference sponsors, was established to honor student-athletes that are standouts both academically and in their sport discipline.
Hagglund, a native of Encinitas, Calif., is a communications major with a 3.59 grade point average, and an occupational therapy minor. A member of the Dean’s List and a USC Mark’s Scholar, she was named Academic All-Pac-12 after being a honorable mention the last two seasons.
On the volleyball court, she is a two-time All-American by the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) and the Trojans’ first-ever All-American libero. She is a three-time Pac-12 Libero of the Year and All-Pac-12 honoree. She is USC’s career-digs leader, ranking third all-time in the Pac-12 collecting over 2,300 digs. Hagglund has been instrumental in USC’s recent success which saw the team reach the NCAA semifinals in her first two season and are headed to the regional semifinals this weekend.
In order to be eligible for the Pac-12 Scholar-Athlete of the Year award, student-athletes must be a senior (in athletics eligibility) on track to receive a degree, have a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher, participate in at least 50 percent of the scheduled contests in the sport and have a minimum one year in residence at the institution. Each Pac- 12 institution may nominate one individual per sport, and the winners are selected by a committee of Pac-12 staff members at the conclusion of each sport’s regular season. The athletics accomplishments of the nominees are a consideration in voting for the award.
A Scholar-Athlete of the Year will be named in each of the Pac-12’s 22 sponsored sports: baseball, men’s basketball, women’s basketball, men’s cross country, women’s cross country, football, men’s golf, women’s golf, women’s gymnastics, men’s rowing, women’s rowing, men’s soccer, women’s soccer, softball, men’s swimming & diving, women’s swimming & diving, men’s tennis, women’s tennis, men’s track & field, women’s track & field, women’s volleyball, and wrestling. The award was first established during the 2008-09 academic year.
Also nominated: Stephanie Preach, ASU; Adrienne Gehan, CAL; Elysse Richardson, COLO; Bethany Bair, ORE; Becky Defoe, OSU; Rachel Williams, STAN; Kelly Reeves, UCLA; Erin Redd-Brandon, UTAH; Jenna Orlandini, WASH; Camryn Irwin, WSU.