University of Minnesota Athletics
Kelley, Berg Honored With Top Awards At Berg Banquet
4/30/2002 12:00:00 AM | Athletics
The Senior Athlete of the Year award is voted on by the student- athletes. The award recipient is chosen for her performance athletically and academically but also for their character and leadership abilities.
Kelley, a native of Barrington, Ill., is one of just two Gopher gymnasts (Marie Roethlisberger) to earn multiple NCAA All-America honors, earning first-team All-America honors in floor exercise in 2002, second-team All-American in all around in 2002 and vault in 2001. Kelley led her team to its highest national finish (ninth) at the 2002 NCAA Championships and helped the Gophers advance to four post-season NCAA appearances in her career.
She was honored as the 2002 Big Ten Gymnast of the Year and was a 2002 All-Big Ten selection on floor exercise, the fourth All-Big Ten honor of her career. Kelley, a three-time team MVP and four-time Big Ten Gymnast of the Week, owns the Minnesota floor exercise record with a 9.975, she also owns the school all around record with a 39.600. A Honda Award finalist, Kelley scored 10 of the top 12 all around scores in Minnesota history.
The Big Ten Medal of Medal of Honor is the highest award to be bestowed upon a student-athlete in the Big Ten Conference. Each Big Ten school selects a senior student-athlete who represents the very best achievements in all areas: academic excellence, athletic achievement and leadership.
Berg, a native of Honolulu, Hawaii, finished her career as a three-time AVCA All-District and All-Big Ten selection and ranked third in assists in Big Ten Conference history. Berg goes down in Gopher volleyball history with 5,913 career assists and led Minnesota to three NCAA Tournament appearances and two Sweet 16 berths. She became the first player to lead the Big Ten in service aces four straight years and finished third all-time in conference history with 283 aces.
Berg played in 128 career matches and was voted a unanimous first-team All-Big Ten selection as a senior. She has been selected to numerous all-tournament teams during the regular season and served as team captain for three years. She has earned team MVP nods for the past two seasons and was a four-year starter and a three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree.
Berg graduated last December with a marketing degree and is playing professional volleyball with the Minnesota Chill.
