Vanessa Lawrenz was named to the Capital One Academic All-America First Team by CoSIDA, capping one of the most decorated defensive careers in the history of Park women's volleyball.

TOWSON, Md. – Park University senior libero Vanessa Lawrenz became Park University’s first-ever Capital One Academic All-America First-Team selection Monday in an announcement made by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), wrapping up one of the most decorated defensive careers in the history of the Park University women’s volleyball program.

Lawrenz, a Rochester, Minn., native, came to the Pirates prior to the 2010 season and made an immediate defensive impact, totaling 1,176 career digs, the sixth-most in school history and the second-highest among Park’s list of two-year players.

As a senior in 2011, Lawrenz led Park to a 22-11 record, helping the Pirates to their first-ever semifinal appearance in the AMC tournament while maintaining a 4.00 GPA in Finance and Marketing.
“This is excellent news, and we are proud of Vanessa’s accomplishments both on the court and in the classroom,” said Park University Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Jerry D. Jorgensen, Ph.D. “Being selected to be a member of the 2011 Academic All-America team is testimony of her commitment to both her academic career and to her sport. She is an outstanding model of what it means to achieve the balance required of a well-rounded student-athlete. We are proud of her.”
The 2011 AMC Libero of the Year, Lawrenz was eighth in the NAIA in digs per set at 5.94 and 20th with 695 total digs, a mark that established a new Park University record for digs in a single season. The previous mark, 663, belonged to Carolina Faria in the 2008 season.

“Vanessa was the definition of a leader for our team this year,” said head coach Mike Talamantes. “She brought that attitude to the classroom, the practice court and to our matches, and she was a big reason for why were successful this year.”

Lawrenz was one of the only players in collegiate volleyball, in 2011, to record double-digit digs in every match of the season, and her streak of double-digit matches was 37, beginning with a 14-dig performance on Oct. 28, 2010, against Stephens College. In her career, Lawrenz played in 65 matches, posting double figures in 58, and in her career, she averaged 5.09 digs per set.

“I am very proud of Vanessa,” director of athletics Claude English said. “I’m proud of her as a student, as a person and as a leader within our volleyball program. She is the definition of what we want our student-athletes to be at Park University.”

Lawrenz plans to graduate in May.

CAPITAL ONE ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICA COLLEGE DIVISION
FIRST TEAM
Paula Ferreira, Columbia College (Academic All-American of the Year)
Vanessa Lawrenz, Park University
Karie Altman, Madonna University
Desieree Erikson, Doane College
Ciciely Fox, College of Idaho
Lindsey Oberacker, Point Park University
Kelsey Pritchard, Taylor University

SECOND TEAM
Betsy Brown, Taylor University
Yiting Cao, Spring Hill College
Jessica Cooper, Shorter College
Marguerite Hanna, Azusa Pacific University
Leslie Welch, Shorter College

THIRD TEAM
Kendra Fiddler, Milligan University
Stephanie Kruggel, Dakota State University
Lauren Percival, Mount Vernon Nazarene University
Sarah Smith, Lee University
Ali Swart, Taylor University
Joy Talcott, Biola University