Gamalski on All-Big Ten Team; Bruzdzinski All-Freshman
11/30/2004 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- A pair of University of Michigan volleyball players -- senior setter Lisa Gamalski (Milwaukee, Wis./Catholic Memorial) and freshman outside hitter Katie Bruzdzinski (Naperville, Ill./Naperville North) -- were honored by the Big Ten Conference on Tuesday (Nov. 30) as the league announced its 2004 honors. Gamalski earned All-Big Ten honors after setting Michigan to its fifth NCAA Tournament in six seasons, while Bruzdzinski earned Big Ten all-freshman team honors, giving Michigan three all-freshman honorees in the last four seasons.
| | Gamalski | | Bruzdzinski |
| | | ||
Bruzdzinski ranks among the top Michigan freshmen all-time in kills, digs and attempts, recording 319 kills and 823 attempts to go with 257 digs in her debut season. She led the Wolverines in kills, aces and points in the regular season and finished fourth in digs. Bruzdzinski also set a record for service aces in a match, tallying eight against Virginia Tech in a 3-0 win in September. Bruzdzinski follows sophomore Megan Bowman (St. John, Ind./Lake Central), who was named to the all-freshman team in 2003, as consecutive Big Ten all-freshman team honorees. Senior Jennifer Gandolph (Greenwood, Ind./Center Grove) was the first Wolverine ever to be named to the all-freshman team, earning the honor in 2001.
Sophomore Erin Cobler (Dexter, Mich./Dexter) received the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award, given to one student-athlete per team to distinguish outstanding athletic ability and sportsmanship.
Michigan (19-12, 9-11 Big Ten) finished tied for sixth in the Big Ten and earned its fifth bid to the NCAA Tournament in the last six seasons. The Wolverines will travel to Austin, Texas, to face Rice University at 5 p.m. CST on Friday (Dec. 3) in the first round of the tournament. The winner will face the winner of No. 11 Texas and Texas State on Saturday (Dec. 4) at 6:30 p.m. CST. All matches will take place at the Gregory Gym on the campus of the University of Texas.
2004 BIG TEN VOLLEYBALL HONORS
All-Big Ten Team
| NAME | YR. | POS. |
| Jessica Belter, Illinois | Sr. | OPP |
| Lisa Gamalski, Michigan | Sr. | S |
| Kim Schram, Michigan State | Sr. | OH |
| Paula Gentil, Minnesota | Jr. | LIB |
| Erin Martin, Minnesota | Sr. | OH |
| Kelly Bowman, Minnesota | So. | S |
| Stacey Gordon, Ohio State | Sr. | OH |
| Marisa Main, Ohio State | So. | S |
| Sam Tortorello, Penn State | Jr. | S |
| Kaleena Walters, Penn State | Jr. | LIB |
| Syndie Nadeau, Penn State | Sr. | OH |
| Kim McConaha, Purdue | Sr. | MB |
| Sheila Shaw, Wisconsin | Jr. | MB |
HONORABLE MENTION: Rachel VanMeter, Illinois; Katie Pollom, Indiana; Renata Dargan, Purdue; Jill Odenthal, Wisconsin.
Big Ten All-Freshman Team
| NAME | POS. |
| Jen Hynds, Illinois | MB |
| Katie Bruzdzinski, Michigan | OH |
| Maggie Griffin, Michigan State | S |
| Ami Stevens, Ohio State | OH |
| Kate Price, Penn State | OH |
| Jackie Simpson, Wisconsin | S |
Player of the Year: Stacey Gordon, Ohio State
Defensive Player of the Year: Paula Gentil, Minnesota
Freshman of the Year: Kate Price, Penn State
Coach of the Year (Coaches): Jim Stone, Ohio State
Coach of the Year (Media): Jim Stone, Ohio State
Contact: Richard Retyi (734) 763-4423
