Freshman outside hitter Carol Grasso of the SLCC Volleyball
team (26-8, 10-0 SWAC) was named a First Team All-American by the American
Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA).
She is the only player from the Scenic West Athletic
Conference (SWAC) to earn AVCA First Team All-American honors and turned in 24
double-double efforts this season.
Grasso, a native of Sao Paulo, Brazil, adds the AVCA honor
to her compliment of awards received in 2013. She was named a National Junior
College Athletic Association (NJCAA) First Team All-American last week and
earned Region 18 Player of the Year honors for her standout performance on the
court this season.
Carol led the SWAC with a school record 500 kills this
season and was also an NJCAA Division I All-Tournament Team selection. Grasso’s
mark of 500 kills ranks 12th in the nation for this season. She finished with a
SWAC-leading 56 service aces and was named Region 18 Tournament Most Valuable
Player. Her total of 56 aces in a single season ranks fourth all-time at SLCC
and 12th in the NJCAA for 2013.
She helped lead the Bruins to their first outright SWAC and
Region 18 championships since 2009 and the program’s first unbeaten conference
season since 2007. Grasso and the Bruins finished fourth at the NJCAA Division
I National Championships in Casper, WY.
Grasso finished the 2013 season with a 3.85 kills per set
average (15th in NJCAA) and a hitting percentage of .265 on 1162 total
attempts. She finished second on the squad in digs at 417 (fourth all-time at
SLCC) with a digs per set average of 3.21.
The 5-foot-10-inch tall freshman turned in six solo blocks
with 43 block assists on the season. She helped lead the Bruins to six wins
over teams ranked in the NJCAA Top 10 and tied for the team lead in sets played
at 130 (sophomore libero Indigo Allen 130).
Grasso accounted for nearly a third of the team’s 1,670
total kills this season and she finished 13th in the nation in total points
scored at 583. Her 4.5 points per set average ranks 12th in the NJCAA in that
category. She and her five fellow Bruin freshmen are expected to return for the
2014 season.
Attached photo (CarolCEU.jpg): SLCC sophomore outside hitter
Carol Grasso on the block vs. USU-Eastern on Oct. 11 at Bruin Arena – Taken by:
David Hubert
For more on SLCC Volleyball, go to: www.slccbruins.com
SLCC Volleyball contact: Head Coach Sue Dulaney at (801)
957-4764 or Sue.Dulaney@slcc.edu