Nebraska Volleyballer Sarah Pavan Named Big 12 Female Athlete of the Year

Sarah Pavan - How Many More Awards Await Her?

Pavan was selected by a media panel from a list of candidates submitted by each Big 12 school. The award is more than just athletics, but also focusses on academic achievement and citizenship. Her athletic skills are well-known, helping Nebraska to a 33-1 season and a national title in 2006. In the classroom, she has a 4.0 GPA while majoring in biochemistry. With regards to citizenship, she is involved in the Huskers' Life Skills program - a program at Nebraska in which she serves as a mentor to other student-athletes. She has also been involved in talking to children about staying drug-free, including being a speaker at "School is Cool", an event where 2,300 8th graders from the Lincoln Public School system gathered.

Sarah Pavan has racked up an amazing amount of rewards this past season:

• Big 12 Female Athlete of the Year
• Honda-Broderick Cup Winner - Best Female College Athlete of 2006-2007
• AVCA (American Volleyball Coaches of America) Player of the Year
• Honda Award of the Year  - Best Volleyball Player of the Year
• ESPN: The Magazine Academic All-American of the Year with a 4.00 in biochemistry
• ESPN: The Magazine Academic All-American (second time)
• Big 12 Volleyball Player of the Year (second time)
• AVCA First-team All-American Volleyball Player (third time)
• NCAA Championship Most Outstanding Player (second time)

Pavan will be a senior in the coming season and has stated as her goals to win another national title at Nebraska and to graduate in four years. A pretty incredible collegiate career so far, you really have to wonder how many more awards can she rake in?

And just as important - if you had a role model for a young girl to look up to, can you think of anyone better than the University of Nebraska's own Sarah Pavan?