Four Lobos Named CSC Volleyball Academic All-District
Four Lobos were named to Academic All-District by College Sports Communicators for their combined performances on the court and in the classroom on Tuesday, with seniors Uxue Guereca, Kaitlynn Biassou, Melissa Walden and Kali Wolf all earning the honor and Guereca advancing for consideration for the Academic All-America Team announced in January.
All four Lobos started all 31 matches for a historic UNM squad that reached MW Semifinals for the first time since 1999 and won a MW Tournament match for the first time since 2006 — Guereca, Biassou and Wolf were all named co-captains prior to the 2023 season.
Guereca, who will graduate in the spring with a bachelor’s in Exercise Science and touts a 3.61 cumulative GPA was most recently named to the MW All-Tournament Team and named All-Conference for her efforts this season that saw her and Biassou — also a MW All-Conference selection — combine for 853 points – nearly half of UNM’s total point output this season (1,754) – while leading the Lobos (18-11, 10-8 MW) to a fourth-place finish in the league standings that stands as UNM’s best since 2015 as well as the Lobos’ third-straight MW Championships berth. Guereca and Biassou led UNM with 3.41 and 3.32 kills per set and 4.01 and 3.93 points per set on the season, respectively. Guereca was a two-time MW Offensive Player of the Week this season.
Biassou graduated with a Liberal Arts degree last spring and is set to complete a Race & Social Justice graduate certificate with a cumulative GPA of 3.55.
Walden, a setter who led the team with a career-high 942 assists (8.05/set) to go with 13 double-doubles on the season, posted a cumulative 3.75 GPA and will graduate in the spring with a bachelor’s in communication. She ranked No. 5 among MW active leaders in assists per set (7.15) at the end of the season, ranking No. 7 in the conference on the season in assists per set.
Wolf graduated last spring with her bachelor’s in only her third year at UNM, pursuing a master’s in biomedical engineering this year and touting a cumulative 3.96 GPA.
ABOUT COLLEGE SPORTS COMMUNICATORS ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICA®
The 2023 Academic All-District® Volleyball teams, selected by College Sports Communicators, recognize the nation’s top student-athletes that excelled in both schoolwork and competition. The CSC Academic All-America® program separately recognizes volleyball honorees in four divisions — NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III and NAIA.
Academic All-District® honorees were considered for advancement to the CSC Academic All-America® ballot. Student-athletes selected as CSC Academic All-America® finalists are denoted with an asterisk and will advance to the national ballot to be voted on by CSC members. First-, second- and third-team Academic All-America® honorees will be announced Jan. 9, 2024.