MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The SSAC announced the 2023 Barnes & Noble College Volleyball Scholar-Athlete Team and Scholar-Athlete of the Year.

Blue Mountain Christian's Gigi Sasso was named 2023 Barnes & Noble College Volleyball Scholar-Athlete of the Year. The senior exercise science major and social science minor posted a 3.66 GPA. On the court, she was named SSAC Player of the Year after posting 3.35 kills/s and 2.9 digs/s, while attacking at a .277 clip and leading the Toppers to the 2023 SSAC Regular Season and Tournament Championships.

2023 Volleyball Scholar-Athlete Team

Gigi Sasso, Blue Mountain Christian

Randi Crandall, Blue Mountain Christian

Morgan Avrit, UT Southern

Simone Moreau, Loyola

Lexi Gillette, Mobile

Layton Adams, Mobile

Hannah Bryan, Faulkner

Additional Notes

·      To be eligible, student-athletes must be a sophomore or above in both academic and athletic standing, must be starters or important reserves, have at least a 3.3 cumulative GPA and have competed in 50% of competitions

·      Graduate students are not eligible, and transfers must have completed one semester at the school

·      Mobile's Gillette leads with a 4.0 GPA, while Bryan posted a 3.94 GPA

·      Moreau was named SSAC Defensive Player of the Year, while she was joined on the All-SSAC First-Team by Avrit, Crandall and Sasso