Whitewater player named Gatorade Georgia Volleyball Player of the Year

In its 28th year of honoring the nation’s best high school athletes, The Gatorade Company, in collaboration with USA TODAY High School Sports, recently announced Teegan Van Gunst of Whitewater High School as its 2012-13 Gatorade Georgia Volleyball Player of the Year.

Van Gunst is the first Gatorade Georgia Volleyball Player of the Year to be chosen from Whitewater High School.

The award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the court, distinguishes Van Gunst as Georgia’s best high school volleyball player.

The 6-foot senior outside hitter led the Wildcats (53-3) to the Class AAAAA state championship this past season. An Under Armour Second Team All-America selection as named by the American Volleyball Coaches Association, Van Gunst amassed 504 kills, 406 digs, 72 blocks, 66 service aces and 33 assists, compiling a .413 hitting percentage. She recorded 19 kills, three blocks and three service aces in a 3-1 Class AAAAA state title victory against McIntosh.

Valerie Jones, head coach at Whitewater High School, describes Teegan as one of the most complete student-athletes she has ever coached.

“Teegan is a fierce competitor on the court as well as in the classroom. She has been a leading force behind the success of Whitewater High School’s volleyball program for the last four years. Teegan is extremely deserving of this award. It has been an honor and privilege to have coached her.”

Also a soccer standout and accomplished trombonist, Van Gunst has maintained a 4.17 weighted GPA in the classroom. A member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, the National Honor Society and the German Honor Society, she has volunteered extensively on behalf of Impact Youth Ministries and her church, including Vacation Bible School, feeding needy families on Thanksgiving and a service-mission trip to Arizona.

Van Gunst has signed a National Letter of Intent to play volleyball on scholarship at Georgia Tech beginning in the fall of 2013.

She joins recent Gatorade Georgia Volleyball Players of the Year Mary Hannah Arrington (2011-12, Pope High School), Kelly Murphy (2010-11, Walton High School), Mary Hoey (2009-10, Pope), Monique Mead (2008-09, Pope) and Betsy Smith (2007-08, Wesleyan School) among the state’s list of former award winners.