2020-21 CoSIDA NCAA Division II Academic All-American Volleyball Teams
Already one of the most decorated players in Hillsdale College volleyball history, Allyssa Van Wienen keeps adding to her list of accomplishments.
On Tuesday afternoon, Van Wienen (Grand Rapids, MI/Christian) was announced as a member of the 2021 CoSIDA Academic All-American Second Team, becoming just the second Charger volleyball player to earn that honor in the program's history.
CoSIDA began the distinguished Academic All-America® program in 1952, and since then, has honored thousands of deserving student-athletes from numerous sports across all divisions with these elite Academic All-America® scholar-athlete honors. Student-athletes must maintain a 3.3 GPA or better and are selected based on their academic and athletic achievements.
Before Van Wienen, Hillsdale's only CoSIDA Academic All-American in volleyball was middle hitter Clara Leutheuser, who was named to the third team in 2011. A three-time All-American, Leutheuser was inducted into the Hillsdale College Athletic Hall of Fame in 2019. In total, just 18 Hillsdale College athletes have earned CoSIDA Academic All-American honors, beginning with football star John Cervini in 1972.
A senior entering her fifth year this fall, Van Wienen is on a similar career trajectory to Leutheuser, and may join her in the Hall of Fame one day. Van Wienen was a consensus NCAA Division II All-American in 2019, as well as the G-MAC Volleyball Player of the Year and Female Athlete of the Year that season, as she helped lead the Chargers to the NCAA DII Midwest Regional Final for just the third time in program history. The senior is a four-time first-team All-G-MAC honoree and three-time first-team All-Region honoree, and one of just four players in Hillsdale College history to exceed both 1,000 kills and 300 blocks in her career. She also holds the 25-point rally scoring era single-season school record at Hillsdale for serving percentage with a mark of .990 this past spring.
Off the volleyball court, Van Wienen has made the dean's list in six of her eight semesters on campus, with a 4.0 in Fall 2019, and earned D2 ADA and G-MAC Academic All-Conference honors multiple times. She's been active in the community as well, assisting with Hillsdale College's Christchapel dedication in fall 2019, and doing extensive volunteer work in the summer helping coach and instruct younger players at volleyball camps. She is currently finishing up a degree in Exercise Science at Hillsdale and is on track to graduate with honors.
Van Wienen will get the chance to add to her accomplishments this fall, as she returns for her fifth and final campaign for the Chargers looking to help Hillsdale to a fifth straight G-MAC crown and another deep NCAA Tournament run.