OVERLAND PARK, Kan. – Illinois State's Jaelyn Keene has been named one of 30 NCAA Division I volleyball student-athletes selected as a candidate for the Senior CLASS Award, the organization announced Tuesday.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition.
A senior middle blocker from Jacksonville, Illinois, Keene has been a standout on the court, in the classroom and in the community during her four years on campus.
Keene is a three-time All-Missouri Valley Conference First-Team and AVCA All-Region selection. She ranks at or near the top of several Illinois State and MVC all-time lists and entered the 2017 season on pace to break both school and conference records for career hitting percentage.
In the classroom, Keene owns a 3.97 cumulative grade-point average as an accounting major. She's been named to the Illinois State AFNI Honor Roll and MVC Academic Honor Roll every possible year and semester. She is a two-time MVC Scholar-Athlete First-Team selection and three-time MVC Commissioner's Academic Excellence Award winner. She was named a CoSIDA Academic All-District and Academic All-America Second-Team selection in 2016.
Keene is also an active member of the community, volunteering her time in a number of community service projects during her time at Illinois State. Keene has been active in Special Olympics, Curb Birds, Recess Buddies, Big Brothers Big Sisters, the Boys and Girls Club, Taste of Redbirds and local food drives.
The 30 candidates for the Senior CLASS Award will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans, who will select one candidate who best exemplifies excellence in the four Cs of community, classroom, character and competition.
The Senior CLASS Award winner will be announced during the 2017 NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Championship in December.
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