Moon Township, Pa. -Senior middle blocker Hannah Veith (Columbus, Ohio / Worthington) of the Robert Morris University volleyball team became the second Colonial volleyball student-athlete in as many years to be named as a semifinalist for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award it was announced Thursday.
Veith joins her former teammate, Amanda Graham, to give the volleyball program Senior CLASS Award semifinalists in back-to-back years. For the second-consecutive season, Robert Morris' candidate was the lone selection from the Northeast Conference (NEC) chosen for this distinction as RMU remained the only NEC school in the history of the award to have a volleyball student-athlete reach the semifinal stage.
From all initial nominations nationwide, 30 student-athletes who have notable achievements in four areas of excellence--community, classroom, character and competition--were chosen as candidates to move forward in the award process. Veith is certainly among elite company as 17 of the 30 semifinalists earned some form of All-America honors from the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) in 2010.
"Hannah is one of the hardest working student-athletes I have had the pleasure of coaching," head coach Dale Starr said. "She is also the definition of a student-athlete and works as hard in the classroom as she does on the court. Her character, work ethic and compassion for others are what separate her from her peers."
While Veith's on-court performances often garner attention, she boasts an equally impressive list of accomplishments away from the hardwood.
Despite being a double major in marketing and management, Veith has made the Dean's List in each of her six semesters and currently has a 3.69 cumulative grade point average. Veith has been named to the NEC Academic Honor Roll in each of her three seasons and has never had a semester average lower than 3.50. She has volunteered her time to assist with the athletic department's annual Women in Sports Day in each of her three years at Robert Morris, has donated her time at the Pittsburgh Food Bank and has been nominated for multiple on-campus awards, by professors and athletic staff members alike, that honor scholastic and community achievements.
Although Veith is one of 30 seniors vying for this award, she will be the only senior for RMU on a team that will sport eight freshmen in 2011. She will certainly be asked to provide a large degree of leadership as a captain in the upcoming season, but she should be well-prepared for this challenge due to her membership in the Colonial Leadership Academy. The Academy is an intensive three-year program that only admits applicants after a formal selection process which requires recommendations from three distinct campus constituencies. The goal of the program is to "maximize the leadership abilities" of student-athletes who have demonstrated strong potential in this area. Veith's desire to devote dozens of extra hours to partake in this academy in addition to her regular coursework and athletic pursuits speak volumes to her character and work ethic.
On the court, Veith burst onto the scene in her freshman campaign, leading the Northeast Conference with a .367 hitting percentage, and has provided the Colonial offense with a forceful threat ever since. Veith hit .324 and posted 95 blocks in her sophomore season and was relied on for increased production when the Colonials lost multiple hitters due to injury. The Ohio native provided her best all-around performance to date in 2010 when she broke the single-season school record for blocks with 154 and hit at an impressive .347 clip. She led the NEC with 1.22 blocks per set, helping Robert Morris finish among the top 20 teams nationally in that department, and earned All-NEC First Team honors. Veith also displayed she could measure up with the nation's top teams when she hit .389 against No. 9 Washington, helping her claim All-Tournament Team honors at the University of Pittsburgh's Blue and Gold Invitational. Veith, who is a career .343 hitter entering her senior season, also became the first Colonial volleyball player to earn back-to-back NEC Player of the Week honors since 2004 and grabbed NEC All-Tournament Team accolades a season ago.
The 30 candidates will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season with the winner being announced in December during the 2011 NCAA Championship. Sportscaster Dick Enberg first conceived of the idea of an award for seniors in 2001. The award was initially awarded in men's and women's basketball but has since expanded to numerous other NCAA sports.
Veith's selection as a semifinalist continues a recent positive trend for the Colonial athletic program as a whole as Robert Morris set a school record in the 2010-11 academic year by having four student-athletes reach the semifinal stage of the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award in their respective sports.
Robert Morris is set to open its 2011 season this weekend at West Virginia's Mountaineer Invitational. RMU will begin its campaign with a match against Valparaiso Saturday at Noon before meeting Towson and West Virginia Sunday at 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m., respectively.