St. John's University Athletics
Petkova Earns CoSIDA ESPN Academic All-District Team Honors
11/4/2010 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Nov. 4, 2010
QUEENS, N.Y. - Heading into her final homestand of the 2010 season, St. John's volleyball sophomore Gabriela Petkova was named to the CoSIDA ESPN Academic All-District Second Team for the University Division as announced by the College Sports Information Directors of America on Thursday afternoon.
Petkova is one of 12 student-athletes, including four from the BIG EAST Conference, to be recognized in the Division I University Division. She boasts an impressive overall GPA of 3.97. She has yet to declare her major.
A setter from Sofia, Bulgaria, Petkova has served as the primary passer for the Red Storm for the past two seasons. Playing in 55 of 57 career matches, Petkova is already ranked fifth at St. John's in career assists with 1,706. She has also recorded 435 career digs, 79 kills, 37 service aces and 12 double-doubles.
With four matches remaining in 2010, Petkova has taken on a new position and helped lead her squad to a 16-11 overall record. In the Red Storm's most recent road trip, Petkova started at libero for the first time of her career and notched a career-high 29 digs in a five-set win over DePaul on Oct. 31. She is currently averaging 2.34 digs per set and is second on the team with 206 on the season. Petkova is also leading the team with 612 assists.
As a freshman in 2009, Petkova played in all 30 matches for the Red Storm and finished the season with 1,094 assists, ranking her eighth in the single-season record book. She finished the campaign ranked eighth in the BIG EAST with 9.86 assists per set.
The sophomore is also an active member of the St. John's community, participating in events such as University Service Day, Senior Fall Ball, St. Nick's Men's Shelter, volunteer trips to the Ronald McDonald House and the Community Mayor Program.
Petkova and the St. John's volleyball team will host USF and Georgetown for its final homestand of the 2010 season. The Red Storm will face the Bulls on Friday, Nov. 5, at 7 p.m., before taking on Georgetown for senior day on Sunday at 2 p.m.
2010 Academic All-District Women's Volleyball Team University Division First Team
Kristin Bignell (Buffalo)
Allie Burke (Marist)
Laura Homann (Syracuse)
Marisa Hornbaker (Buffalo)
Noemie Lefebvre (Syracuse)
Allison Nieters (Iona)
Hayley Todd (Syracuse)
2010 Academic All-District Women's Volleyball Team University Division Second Team
Rachel August (Hofstra)
Lauren Balmert (Fairfield)
Gabriela Petkova (St. John's)
Brianna Williamson (Brown)
Christine Wu (Harvard)
