AUSTIN, Texas – Illinois State volleyball's Ali Line has been awarded a spot on the 2018 Google Cloud Academic All-America® First Team, as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). The senior became just the third ISU volleyball student-athlete to earn an All-America selection, and second to be given first-team laurels from the organization.
"This honor is a huge accomplishment and testament to Ali's hard work and dedication to her studies," head coach Leah Johnson said. "To earn a spot on the all-conference first team for her athletic performance this year, and then to be given an All-America selection for her academic success, is a great capstone for her career as a Redbird."
Line, a two-time Missouri Valley Conference Scholar-Athlete First Team member, holds a perfect 4.0 cumulative grade-point average as a nursing major at Illinois State. At the beginning of July, it was announced that the Bargersville, Indiana, native was selected as a Robert G. Bone Scholar for the 2018-19 academic year. The Bone Scholarship is the top undergraduate honor bestowed at Illinois State, and is reserved for only the top 14 rising seniors, across the entire University. Additionally, she has been named to the MVC and AFNI honor rolls in every possible semester.
On the court this season, Line finished with a team-best 304 kills, averaging 2.64 kills per set on .325 hitting – the third-best percentage in the conference. The senior has reached double-digit kills on 16 occasions in 2018, while being named the Top Dawg Challenge's Most Valuable Player, after helping guide the Redbirds to a trio of wins over Eastern Illinois, Auburn and Butler earlier this season. She has turned in career-best kill performances in three-set, four-set and five-set matches this season, tabulating an all-time best 19 against Evansville. Line finished her career with the seventh-best hitting percentage in volleyball program history with a .287 clip, while finishing her career in the top-25 in career blocks (327) and kills (963).
Line was previously named a CoSIDA Academic All-District selection this fall. To be eligible for CoSIDA's Academic All-America program, student-athletes must be a starter or important reserve on his/her team, reached sophomore status, and own a cumulative GPA of 3.30 or better (on a 4.0 scale).
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