Abby Thelen Named to All-BIG EAST First Team
11/21/2018 12:09:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
NEW YORK, N.Y. – Seton Hall senior Abby Thelen (Ft. Mitchell, Ky.) was named to the All-BIG EAST Volleyball First Team on Wednesday.
Thelen becomes the first Pirate non-libero to be named to the All-BIG EAST First Team in back-to-back years since Perette Arrington in 1993 and 1994.
Once again, Thelen was the primary offensive option for the Pirates in 2018, leading the team in kills and kills per set for a third straight year. Her 391 kills and 3.72 kills per set this season ranked fourth in the BIG EAST Conference. Thelen was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll a team-high three times, and she was named to the All-Tournament Team at both the Blue & White Classic in Buffalo and the Pirates' own Seton Hall Classic.
Thelen topped 15 kills in a single-match a team-best 11 times in 2018, giving her 34 for her remarkable career.
On Oct. 7, Thelen erupted for a career-high 25 kills to go with three blocks in a victory at Providence. Most recently, she closed out her career with a performance for the ages at DePaul on Nov. 17. Thelen had 23 kills and only one attack error in just three sets in a Pirate sweep of the Blue Demons. Her 23 kills are the most by any BIG EAST player this season in a three-set match.
A truly well-rounded student-athlete, earlier this season Thelen was named one of only 30 candidates nationwide for the prestigious Senior CLASS Award. To be eligible, a candidate needs notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition. 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. Thelen was one of only three BIG EAST Conference student-athletes on the list.
The graduating senior will leave her indelible mark on the Pirate record books. Thelen graduates as one of only six players in Seton Hall history with over 1,300 career kills. She also ranks fifth in school history with over 3,500 career attacks. A strong defensive player as well, she also tallied well over 200 career blocks and nearly 400 career digs.
2018 Volleyball All-BIG EAST and Major Awards
BIG EAST Player of the Year
Jaali Winters, Creighton, Sr., OH
BIG EAST Libero of the Year
Amanda Sanabia, St. John's. Jr., L
BIG EAST Freshman of the Year
Efronsini Alexakou, St. John's, Fr., OH
Coaching Staff of the Year
St. John's (Head Coach Joanne Persico)
All-BIG EAST First Team
Bri Lilly, Butler, Sr., MB
Jaali Winters, Creighton, Sr., OH
Taryn Kloth, Creighton, Sr., OH
Madelyn Cole, Creighton, Jr., S
Symone Speech, Georgetown, Sr., MB
Allie Barber, Marquette, Jr., OH
Anna Haak, Marquette, Sr., OH
Jenna Rosenthal, Marquette, RS-Sr., MB
Efronsini Alexakou, St. John's, Fr., OH
Erica Di Maulo, St. John's, Jr., S
Amanda Sanabia, St. John's, Jr., L
ABBY THELEN, SETON HALL, SR., OH
All-BIG EAST Second Team
Megan Ballenger, Creighton, Jr., MB
Alyssa Sinnette, Georgetown, Sr., OH
Martha Konovodoff, Marquette, So., L
Allison Impellizeri, Providence, Sr., MB
Clare Delaplane, Villanova, Fr., OH
Regan Lough, Villanova, Jr., L
Thelen becomes the first Pirate non-libero to be named to the All-BIG EAST First Team in back-to-back years since Perette Arrington in 1993 and 1994.
Once again, Thelen was the primary offensive option for the Pirates in 2018, leading the team in kills and kills per set for a third straight year. Her 391 kills and 3.72 kills per set this season ranked fourth in the BIG EAST Conference. Thelen was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll a team-high three times, and she was named to the All-Tournament Team at both the Blue & White Classic in Buffalo and the Pirates' own Seton Hall Classic.
Thelen topped 15 kills in a single-match a team-best 11 times in 2018, giving her 34 for her remarkable career.
On Oct. 7, Thelen erupted for a career-high 25 kills to go with three blocks in a victory at Providence. Most recently, she closed out her career with a performance for the ages at DePaul on Nov. 17. Thelen had 23 kills and only one attack error in just three sets in a Pirate sweep of the Blue Demons. Her 23 kills are the most by any BIG EAST player this season in a three-set match.
A truly well-rounded student-athlete, earlier this season Thelen was named one of only 30 candidates nationwide for the prestigious Senior CLASS Award. To be eligible, a candidate needs notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition. 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. Thelen was one of only three BIG EAST Conference student-athletes on the list.
The graduating senior will leave her indelible mark on the Pirate record books. Thelen graduates as one of only six players in Seton Hall history with over 1,300 career kills. She also ranks fifth in school history with over 3,500 career attacks. A strong defensive player as well, she also tallied well over 200 career blocks and nearly 400 career digs.
2018 Volleyball All-BIG EAST and Major Awards
BIG EAST Player of the Year
Jaali Winters, Creighton, Sr., OH
BIG EAST Libero of the Year
Amanda Sanabia, St. John's. Jr., L
BIG EAST Freshman of the Year
Efronsini Alexakou, St. John's, Fr., OH
Coaching Staff of the Year
St. John's (Head Coach Joanne Persico)
All-BIG EAST First Team
Bri Lilly, Butler, Sr., MB
Jaali Winters, Creighton, Sr., OH
Taryn Kloth, Creighton, Sr., OH
Madelyn Cole, Creighton, Jr., S
Symone Speech, Georgetown, Sr., MB
Allie Barber, Marquette, Jr., OH
Anna Haak, Marquette, Sr., OH
Jenna Rosenthal, Marquette, RS-Sr., MB
Efronsini Alexakou, St. John's, Fr., OH
Erica Di Maulo, St. John's, Jr., S
Amanda Sanabia, St. John's, Jr., L
ABBY THELEN, SETON HALL, SR., OH
All-BIG EAST Second Team
Megan Ballenger, Creighton, Jr., MB
Alyssa Sinnette, Georgetown, Sr., OH
Martha Konovodoff, Marquette, So., L
Allison Impellizeri, Providence, Sr., MB
Clare Delaplane, Villanova, Fr., OH
Regan Lough, Villanova, Jr., L
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Women's VolleyballSeton Hall Baseball vs. St. John's (Doubleheader Game 2)
Sunday, April 05
Seton Hall Baseball vs. St. John's (Doubleheader Game 1)
Sunday, April 05
Seton Hall Softball vs. Stony Brook
Wednesday, April 01
Seton Hall Softball vs. Saint Joseph's
Thursday, March 26
