Colorado State University Athletics
Rams' Minch named college female athlete of year
1/12/2011 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Jan. 12, 2011
By Kaitlyn Comiskey
Athletic Media Relations
FORT COLLINS, Colo. - Former outside hitter Danielle Minch continues to add to her impressive list of accomplishments, even after her career at CSU has come to a close.
The Colorado Sports Hall of Fame this week named her its 2010 college female athlete of the year.
A native of Sterling, Colo., Minch just completed her senior season in the fall of 2010 and was one of the top outside hitters in the country. She boasts two consecutive Mountain West Conference Player of the Year awards, and was recently named to the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) all-West region team for the second straight season. She became the fourth player in MWC history to earn back-to-back Player of the Year awards.
Minch led Colorado State to a 26-5 overall record, and the program's eighth MWC regular-season title. The team participated in the NCAA tournament for the 16th consecutive season, and advanced to the second round for the fourth straight year. Minch finished the regular season leading the league in points per set (4.58) and was third in the league in kills per set (3.73) in conference matches. She ranked fifth in the MWC in kills (3.35) and second in points per set (4.07) in overall matches, while tallying double-digit kills in 22 matches this season. She also joined an elite club by eclipsing 1,000 career kills during the 2010 campaign.
Head Coach Tom Hilbert was also awarded a special citation from the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame, as he became the most winningest coach in any sport at CSU this past fall season. Hilbert has now been the head volleyball coach at CSU for 14 years, and owns a record of 357-91.
Both Minch and Hilbert will be honored at the Hall of Fame's annual banquet April 12 at the Denver Marriott City Center.
