OVERLAND PARK, Kan. - College of Charleston senior middle blocker Sarah Havel was selected as one of thirty national candidates for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award, the organization announced Thursday.
The annual award honors student-athletes who excel both on and off the court. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must have notable achievements in four areas of excellence - community, classroom, character and competition.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the Lowe's 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.
As an education major, Havel has maintained a GPA of 3.28, earning a spot on the 2010-11 Southern Conference Honor Roll.
A native of Carmel, Ind., Havel went on medical missionary trips to Honduras through the L.A.M.B. Institute in 2010 and 2011, providing medical aid to poverty-ridden areas. She traveled with teammate and close friend Hayley Harrell as the two girls, along with Harrell's sister, Jamie, helped treat 617 people in three days of clinics in Tegucigalpa. For their work, the trio was featured in the July edition of Volleyball Magazine.
Havel enters the 2011 season as a team captain after a breakout 2010 campaign. She plays at the heart of the floor as a middle blocker and provides the emotional spark on and off the court.
"Sarah is an outstanding leader on and off the floor for us here at the College of Charleston," said head coach Jason Kepner. "She has a great personality and positive attitude which allows her to relate and communicate with all the players. I am very happy with the way she works as a liaison between the coaches and players. I could not ask for a better representative and leader for our volleyball team."
Havel was recently selected to the All-Southern Conference preseason team. In 2010, Havel was named First Team All-Southern Conference and selected for the SoCon All-Tournament team. Against Elon, she tallied 17 blocks, which set a new school record and tied the conference record. She was picked as the October Player of the Month and twice named SoCon Defensive Player of the Week. In 2009, Havel was named Second Team All-Conference and selected for the All-Tournament team. Havel enters the 2011 season ranked sixth all-time in school history with 320 blocks.
The 30 candidates will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those names will be placed on the final ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans who will select one finalist who best exemplifies excellence in the four Cs of community, classroom, character and competition.