St. John's University Athletics
Rastelli Wins BIG EAST Co-Player of the Year, Kathariou and Walther Honored
11/24/2021 1:00:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
The trio of Johnnies led the team in its first full season since 2019
QUEENS, N.Y. (Nov. 24, 2021) – In the Red Storm's first full season since winning a BIG EAST Championship in 2019, Rachele Rastelli, Ariadni Kathariou and Giorgia Walther have been recognized by the BIG EAST for their efforts.
Rastelli was named the BIG EAST Co-Player of the Year alongside Marquette's Taylor Wolf and joined Kathariou as a selection to the All-BIG EAST Team. This is the first time in BIG EAST volleyball history that two players will share the Player of the Year award. Walther earned a spot on the All-BIG EAST Freshman Team as a unanimous selection.
Rastelli is the fourth player in program history to be named the conference's player of the year and her recognition comes just a year after fellow senior Efrosini Alexakou was presented with the same honor. Hui Ping Huang was the first Johnnie to earn the accolade in 2007 before Wioleta Leszczynska captured the honor in 2008. St. John's won BIG EAST Regular Season titles in each of those seasons.
Rastelli, a six-rotation player for the Red Storm, led the BIG EAST with 4.64 kills per set during conference play. The Parma, Italy native also leads the conference in points and ranks eighth in the nation with 555 total points. The senior right-side hitter took the country by storm and currently ranks in the top 50 of four different statistical categories. Her 35 kills at Georgetown on Oct. 29 currently ranks sixth in the country for kills in a five-set match. She posted double-digit kills in 25 of 27 matches, including seven 20+ kills games, and two 30+ kills matches.
This marks Rastelli's third straight selection to the conference's All-BIG EAST Team. She received three selections to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll this season and was named BIG EAST Player of the Week four times. Rastelli etched her place in the St. John's record books on Sept. 3, joining the 1,000 kill club during the team's match against Cornell. She currently ranks fourth on the program's all-time kills list with 1, 415 kills.
Kathariou scattered her name all over the conference leaderboards this season. The league's leader in blocks, she boasted 90 rejections in the conference season alone and currently sits in a tie for second in the nation with 151 total blocks. The middle blocker also ranks seventh in the league with a stellar .309 hitting percentage during conference play.
Kathariou earned a nod to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll on Nov. 8 after she landed 15 kills and hit .600 against Marquette. The Thessaloniki, Greece native posted the highest block total by a conference player this fall with a 14-rejection performance at Georgetown. She has also found her way into the Red Storm record book, sitting in eighth place with an overall hitting clip of .297 and an overall block total of 345. She also found herself tied for fourth on the single-season blocks list.
Walther is one of three freshmen to sit in the top 10 of the BIG EAST in kills, landing in eighth place with 210 kills and a 3.09 per set average during conference play. She landed 335 kills for the Red Storm during the season and had two double-double performances.
Walther led the team in three matches this season and posted a career-high 20 kills against Connecticut on Nov. 12.
2021 BIG EAST Volleyball Regular Season Awards
BIG EAST Co-Players of the Year
Taylor Wolf, Marquette, Gr., S/RS
Rachele Rastelli, St. John's, Sr., RS
BIG EAST Libero of the Year
Jaymeson Kinley, Butler, Jr., L
BIG EAST Setter of the Year
McKayla Wuensch, UConn, Gr., S
BIG EAST Freshman of the Year
Norah Sis, Creighton, Fr., OH
Coaching Staff of the Year
DePaul (Head Coach: Marie Zidek)
All-BIG EAST Team
(listed alphabetically by institution, then last name)
Melody Davidson, Butler, R-Sr., MB ^
Jaymeson Kinley, Butler, Jr., L ^
Kennadie Jake-Turner, UConn Sr., MB
Caylee Parker, UConn, Sr., OH ^
McKayla Wuensch, UConn, Gr., S
Abby Bottomley, Creighton, Sr., L
Norah Sis, Creighton, Fr., OH ^
Kendra Wait, Creighton, Fr., S
Jaela Zimmerman, Creighton, Sr., OH ^
Donna Brown, DePaul, Sr., MB
Jill Pressly, DePaul, So., OH
Emma Price, DePaul, Gr., RS
Savannah Rennie, Marquette, Gr., MB
Hope Werch, Marquette, Gr., OH ^
Taylor Wolf, Marquette, Gr., S/RS ^
Ariadni Kathariou, St. John's, Sr., MB
Rachele Rastelli, St. John's, Sr., RS ^
Carrigan O'Reilly, Xavier, Jr., S
All-BIG EAST Freshman Team
(listed alphabetically by institution, then last name)
Mariah Grunze, Butler, Fr., OH
Norah Sis, Creighton, Fr., OH ^
Kendra Wait, Creighton, Fr., S ^
Shaliyah Rhoden, Providence, Fr., OH ^
Giorgia Walther, St. John's, Fr., OH ^
Rose Crist, Villanova, Fr., OH
^ - denotes unanimous selection
Rastelli was named the BIG EAST Co-Player of the Year alongside Marquette's Taylor Wolf and joined Kathariou as a selection to the All-BIG EAST Team. This is the first time in BIG EAST volleyball history that two players will share the Player of the Year award. Walther earned a spot on the All-BIG EAST Freshman Team as a unanimous selection.
Rastelli is the fourth player in program history to be named the conference's player of the year and her recognition comes just a year after fellow senior Efrosini Alexakou was presented with the same honor. Hui Ping Huang was the first Johnnie to earn the accolade in 2007 before Wioleta Leszczynska captured the honor in 2008. St. John's won BIG EAST Regular Season titles in each of those seasons.
Rastelli, a six-rotation player for the Red Storm, led the BIG EAST with 4.64 kills per set during conference play. The Parma, Italy native also leads the conference in points and ranks eighth in the nation with 555 total points. The senior right-side hitter took the country by storm and currently ranks in the top 50 of four different statistical categories. Her 35 kills at Georgetown on Oct. 29 currently ranks sixth in the country for kills in a five-set match. She posted double-digit kills in 25 of 27 matches, including seven 20+ kills games, and two 30+ kills matches.
This marks Rastelli's third straight selection to the conference's All-BIG EAST Team. She received three selections to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll this season and was named BIG EAST Player of the Week four times. Rastelli etched her place in the St. John's record books on Sept. 3, joining the 1,000 kill club during the team's match against Cornell. She currently ranks fourth on the program's all-time kills list with 1, 415 kills.
Kathariou scattered her name all over the conference leaderboards this season. The league's leader in blocks, she boasted 90 rejections in the conference season alone and currently sits in a tie for second in the nation with 151 total blocks. The middle blocker also ranks seventh in the league with a stellar .309 hitting percentage during conference play.
Kathariou earned a nod to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll on Nov. 8 after she landed 15 kills and hit .600 against Marquette. The Thessaloniki, Greece native posted the highest block total by a conference player this fall with a 14-rejection performance at Georgetown. She has also found her way into the Red Storm record book, sitting in eighth place with an overall hitting clip of .297 and an overall block total of 345. She also found herself tied for fourth on the single-season blocks list.
Walther is one of three freshmen to sit in the top 10 of the BIG EAST in kills, landing in eighth place with 210 kills and a 3.09 per set average during conference play. She landed 335 kills for the Red Storm during the season and had two double-double performances.
Walther led the team in three matches this season and posted a career-high 20 kills against Connecticut on Nov. 12.
2021 BIG EAST Volleyball Regular Season Awards
BIG EAST Co-Players of the Year
Taylor Wolf, Marquette, Gr., S/RS
Rachele Rastelli, St. John's, Sr., RS
BIG EAST Libero of the Year
Jaymeson Kinley, Butler, Jr., L
BIG EAST Setter of the Year
McKayla Wuensch, UConn, Gr., S
BIG EAST Freshman of the Year
Norah Sis, Creighton, Fr., OH
Coaching Staff of the Year
DePaul (Head Coach: Marie Zidek)
All-BIG EAST Team
(listed alphabetically by institution, then last name)
Melody Davidson, Butler, R-Sr., MB ^
Jaymeson Kinley, Butler, Jr., L ^
Kennadie Jake-Turner, UConn Sr., MB
Caylee Parker, UConn, Sr., OH ^
McKayla Wuensch, UConn, Gr., S
Abby Bottomley, Creighton, Sr., L
Norah Sis, Creighton, Fr., OH ^
Kendra Wait, Creighton, Fr., S
Jaela Zimmerman, Creighton, Sr., OH ^
Donna Brown, DePaul, Sr., MB
Jill Pressly, DePaul, So., OH
Emma Price, DePaul, Gr., RS
Savannah Rennie, Marquette, Gr., MB
Hope Werch, Marquette, Gr., OH ^
Taylor Wolf, Marquette, Gr., S/RS ^
Ariadni Kathariou, St. John's, Sr., MB
Rachele Rastelli, St. John's, Sr., RS ^
Carrigan O'Reilly, Xavier, Jr., S
All-BIG EAST Freshman Team
(listed alphabetically by institution, then last name)
Mariah Grunze, Butler, Fr., OH
Norah Sis, Creighton, Fr., OH ^
Kendra Wait, Creighton, Fr., S ^
Shaliyah Rhoden, Providence, Fr., OH ^
Giorgia Walther, St. John's, Fr., OH ^
Rose Crist, Villanova, Fr., OH
^ - denotes unanimous selection
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
RS
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
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