GREENWOOD, Ind. - UNCG's Allison Penner and Wofford's Catie Cronister were named to the 2017 Academic All-District Volleyball Team for NCAA Division I on Thursday afternoon. Both Penner and Cronister are now eligible for Academic All-America honors against other first team selections across the eight districts, nationwide.
Penner is the third Spartan to earn the award, and first since Branagan Fuller in the 2008 season. Lori Collins in 2005 was the other Spartan to have earned the award.
She has earned a 4.00 GPA in accounting. She has twice been named to the SoCon Honor Roll. Last year, she earned the SoCon Commissioner’s Medal and was a SoCon All-Academic performer.
Penner is a two-time first team All-SoCon performer, receiving that honor again this season. She is a former SoCon Freshman of the Year. This season, Penner has led the team with 1,150 assists, the third-straight season she has tallied over 1,000 assists. She is second on the team with 14 double-doubles, recording 285 digs on the season. She is third on the team with 2.60 digs per set. She scored a season-high 61 assists in a five-set win over American in September.
Cronister, an outside hitter from Chicago, Illinois, was one of eight Division I volleyball players selected to the First Team from District 4, comprised of student-athletes who play volleyball in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and Puerto Rico.
Cronister has a 4.0 at Wofford. Her major is undeclared.
The honor is the fourth of the week for Cronister. Monday, Cronister was named Southern Conference Offensive Player of the Week for the third time this season. Tuesday, she was named the Southern Conference Co-Player of the Year, and Wednesday she was the SoCon student-athlete of the week.
Cronister, who became the program's first conference Freshman of the Year winner in 2016, led the conference in total kills (505) and kills per set (4.55). She set a new program record for kills in a single season en route to leading Wofford to the team's highest win total in the Division I era and the most Southern Conference wins in program history. Cronister also led the conference in service aces, racking up 55 (0.50 per set), good enough for eighth nationally among Division I players.
To be nominated, a student-athlete must be a starter or important reserve with at least a 3.30 cumulative grade point average (on a 4.0 scale) at his/her current institution. Nominated athletes must have participated in at least 50 percent of the team's games at the position listed on nomination. First-team Academic All-District honorees advance to the CoSIDA Academic All-America Team ballot, where first-, second- and third-team All-America honorees will be selected later this month.