Michigan State University Athletics
Ashley Schatzle Named to All-Big Ten Team
11/26/2007 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Nov. 26, 2007
East Lansing, Mich. - A trio of Michigan State volleyball seniors earned postseason recognition from the Big Ten Conference today. Ashley Schatzle (Monroe, Mich./Monroe) was named to the 12-person All-Big Ten Team, while Katie Johnson (Brooklyn, Mich./Columbia Central) was one of five honorable mention selections. Miken Trogdon (Lisle, Ill./Wheaton St. Francis) was Michigan State's representative of the Big Ten Volleyball Sportsmanship Award.
Schatzle earns All-Big Ten Team honors for the second-straight season and marks the 19th time that a Spartan has been named to the first team. Schatzle leads the team and is third in the Big Ten with 499 kills (4.50 per game) overall and in Big Ten play, she is fourth with 322 kills (4.60 pg). She has posted 19 double-doubles on the season, including eight of her last nine matches, and currently is on a string of 18-straight double-digit kill efforts. Schatzle is also second on the team with 345 digs (3.11 per game). In only three seasons in Green and White, she is ninth all-time with 1,365 kills, only nine behind Jenny Rood (2000-03) for eighth.
For the third-consecutive season, Johnson is selected as an All-Big Ten honorable mention choice. Johnson is right behind Schatzle on both the team and conference leader boards with 495 kills (4.50 per game), keeping her average consistent in league play at 4.49 kills per game (314 total), good for sixth in the Big Ten. She is also second on the team with 34 service aces and fourth with 211 digs. Johnson has four double-doubles and six 20-kill matches on the season. For her career, Johnson is one of the Spartans' most prolific attackers, ranking fourth on the all-time kills list with 1,766 and second with a 4.28 kills per game average.
Trogdon was the Spartans' honoree for the Big Ten Volleyball Sportsmanship Award for the second-straight season. Trogdon anchored the Spartans' defense this season, leading the squad with 373 digs (3.52 per game). Her numbers have improved of late, having posted double-digit dig efforts in 13 of the last 14 matches, including a career-high 22 against Ohio State (Nov. 9). Trogdon's recent hot stretch has moved her into the top-10 in conference matches, averaging 3.74 per game (247 total). She is also third on the team with 24 service aces. Trogdon is now a candidate for the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award, as the conference office will honor one male and one female student-athlete from each institution at the end of the school year.
Big Ten Champion Penn State took home three of the four major league awards, as Christa Harmotto was named the 2007 Big Ten Player of the Year, Arielle Wilson earned Freshman of the Year honors and Russ Rose was the Coach of Year by both the media and his fellow coaches. Stesha Selsky of Michigan was this season's recipient of the Defensive Player of the Year.
The Spartans begin postseason play on Friday, Nov. 30 against Kentucky in the first round of the 2007 NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Tournament. First serve in Dayton, Ohio's Frericks Center is scheduled for 5 p.m. ET.
