Wallace State volleyball’s Kelsea Bivins named a NJCAA 2nd-team All-American

HANCEVILLE, ALA. – Wallace State volleyball outside hitter Kelsea Bivins was recognized this week as a National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division I second-team All-American, marking the second consecutive year a player from the program earned 2^nd-team status.
Bivins, a 6-foot-1 sophomore from Thompson High School, led the Alabama Community College Conference (ACCC) this season with 442 kills and also averaged a conference-best 3.68 kills per set. She was second in the league with a .400 hitting percentage and added 84 blocks and 70 digs.
“Kelsea Bivins earning 2^nd-team All American status is a testament to our program and the history and respect we have earned over the years on the national level. Our reputation allows me to recruit better players, which in return produces better teams that can earn the respect nationally for these kind of rewards,” said Wallace State coach Randy Daniel. “Kelsea is a very powerful, dynamic hitter and her consistency throughout the year helped our team be successful. Kelsea can be physically dominating when she is motivated to play her best. She continues the streak of All-Americans for our program, and I am proud of her effort.”
Bivins registered 10 or more kills in 28 matches during the 2016 season, including racking up a career-high 21 kills against Southern Union on Oct. 2. She helped Wallace State finish with a 38-4 record, earn its eighth consecutive ACCC championship and make its eighth straight national tournament appearance and 16^th overall.
Bivins has committed to play for the University of Memphis next season. She was also the 2016 ACCC Player of the Year, earned a spot on the ACCC all-tournament team on Oct. 30 and was named the ACCC Player of the Week on four instances during the season.
As a freshman with the Lions, Bivins was a 2^nd-team All-ACCC selection after compiling 434 kills and 234 digs.
Bivins and most of the Wallace State sophomore class were each a part of 77 victories and a pair of conference championships over two seasons.
Bivins continues the Wallace State volleyball streak of having at least one player recognized as a NJCAA All-American since 2009.
CeCe Hall was also a second-team selection last season, a year after Syretha Pride earned NJCAA 1^st-team honors and made history as the first player in program history to receive such esteemed recognition. BreAnna Thompson was a NJCAA honorable mention selection 2014 for the Lions, joining Kianna Delaney in 2013, Erica Baker in 2012 and 2011, Lesley Bemis in 2011, Taulise Dunklin in 2010 and Cassie Daniels in 2009 as honorable mention choices.
For more information about Wallace State athletics, visit www.athletics.wallacestate.edu.