Pioneer place six on WWPA All-Academic Team
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Freshman Chelsie Bryan was among the six Pioneers named to the WWPA All-Academic team. (Photo: Blue 39 Photography)
- July 15, 2010
HAYWARD, Calif. - The postseason honors continue to roll in for the ÂãÁÄÖ±²¥ women's water polo team, as six members were named to the Western Water Polo Association (WWPA) All-Academic Team on Thursday. Senior Jenna Casady, juniors Danielle Comforti and Liz Warren and freshmen Chelsie Bryan, Alex Gudenau and Claire Pierce all earned their second academic award of the season after garnering Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches honors last month.
Pierce was a leader both in the pool and the classroom in the WWPA. The kinesiology major led all WWPA honorees with a 4.0 grade point average and paced the conference with 90 goals this season. The Perth, Australia native adds the latest award to her growing list of honors including WWPA Newcomer of the Year and All-WWPA Second Team.
The program's single-season and all-time assists leader, Casady notched 95 helpers this season and added 51 goals to move into sixth on the Pioneers' all-time leading scorers list, all while maintaining a 3.44 GPA as an environmental science major. The El Sobrante native also took over third place in career steals with 177 in just two seasons as a Pioneer. Her 77 steals in 2010 ranked among the top 10 in the NCAA.
As a junior, Warren became the Pioneers' all-time leading scorer, adding 79 goals this season to finish second on the team in 2010. An All-WWPA Honorable Mention selection, the Stockton native turned in a 3.29 GPA in criminal justice. In her first season at East Bay, Comforti posted 41 goals and 33 assists, finishing fourth and fifth on the team, respectively. Hailing from Concord, Comforti also succeeded in the classroom, boasting a 3.22 average as a biology major.
Bryan had a successful rookie season, notching 29 goals and 16 assists, while maintaining a 3.3 GPA in CSUEB's prestigious nursing program. Gudenau also made her presence felt in her first year as a Pioneer, scoring seven goals and adding 14 assists as a freshman. Academically, Gudenau maintained a 3.67 average as a kinesiology major.
As a team, the Pioneers earned the No. 3 seed and finished fifth at the WWPA Tournament, both program bests, while collecting 24 wins on the year. Head Coach Lisa Cooper was named WWPA Coach of the Year after CSUEB posted its first victory in program history over a nationally ranked opponent and notched five wins over Division I programs.
The WWPA All-Academic Team consists of student-athletes who carried a 3.0 cumulative GPA (on a 4.0 scale), played in at least 50 percent of the team's contests in that season and was classified as a full-time student who has completed a minimum of one semester or two quarters at their institution. The honors were the second straight for both Warren and Casady who were part of a record 156 male and female student-athletes awarded academic honors by the WWPA for the 2009-10 season.