Two CMSU Jennies named to Academic All-District Volleyball team

(WARRENSBURG, Mo.) – Fans of Central Missouri State University Jennies volleyball are used to seeing junior middle hitter Becky Haug (Lee’s Summit, Mo.) and sophomore libero Katie Tarka (St. Charles, Mo.) perform on the court. What they may not know is what solid students Haug and Tarka are.

Both were honored recently for their efforts on the court and in the classroom, as they were named to the 2004 College Division CoSIDA Academic All-District VII Volleyball Team. Haug was a second-team selection, while Tarka was named to the third team.

An interior design major with a 3.84 grade-point average, Haug is hitting .350 with 3.39 kills and 0.91 blocks per game. She had a team-high 24 block solos, and was second in kills, hitting percentage, block assists, total blocks, and 436.0 points (4.15 per game).

Tarka, a biology major with a 3.88 grade-point average, is putting up an MIAA and team leading 6.64 digs per game. That total is second in NCAA Division II. She also has registered 23 service aces on the season.

Central Missouri State is 28-5 and finished 13-3 and second in the MIAA regular season standings. The Jennies play Washburn University tonight in the semifinals of the MIAA Tournament.

The CoSIDA Academic All-District and All-America teams are selected by a vote of members of the College Sports Information Directors of America. Student-athletes selected as first-team All-District automatically advance to the national ballot. The College Division includes all institutions not in NCAA Division I (including D-II, D-III, and NAIA). District VII includes institutions in Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, Alberta, and Saskatchewan.

To be nominated, a student-athlete must be a sophomore, junior or senior with at least two terms of attendance at the nominating school, and be a starter or key reserve with a minimum cumulative grade-point average of 3.20.