Gatorade® National Volleyball Player of the Year: Alexa Filley

LOUISVILLE, Ky., Jan. 9, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- In its 29^th year of honoring the nation's best high school athletes, The Gatorade Company, in collaboration with USA TODAY High School Sports, recently announced Alexa Filley of Assumption High School (Louisville, Ky.) as its 2013-14 Gatorade National Volleyball Player of the Year.  Filley was surprised with the news by silver medalist April Ross, who earned Gatorade National Volleyball Player of the Year honors in 1999-00.

"It felt great to surprise Alexa with the Gatorade National Volleyball Player of the Year award and welcome her into one of the most prestigious legacy programs in high school sports," said Ross.  "Gatorade has been on the sidelines fueling athletic performance for years, so to be recognized by a brand that understands the game and truly helps athletes perform is a huge honor for these kids."

The award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the field, distinguishes Filley as the nation's best high school volleyball player.  A national advisory panel comprised of sport-specific experts and sports journalists helped select Filley from more than 400,000 high school volleyball players nationwide. Filley is now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade Female High School Athlete of the Year award, to be presented at a special afternoon ceremony prior to The ESPY Awards in July.

The 5-foot-9 senior setter led the Rockets to a 36-6 record, the state championship and a No. 5 national ranking by PrepVolleyball.com this past season. Filley recorded 1,248 assists, 334 digs, 102 kills, 58 blocks and 41 service aces. A 2013-14 Under Armour Second Team All-American, she was MVP of the state tournament each of the past two seasons and is a two-time First Team All-State selection.

Filley has maintained a 3.91 GPA in the classroom. She has volunteered locally on behalf of the Special Olympics, and has donated time feeding the hungry and assisting in a second grade classroom.

"Alexa Filley is a superior athlete and wonderfully skilled," said John Tawa, publisher of PrepVolleyball.com. "But since her mid-teens, what's struck me is how hittable a ball she sets and how she commands the court. The confidence she exudes remains her calling card to this day. A four-time state champion as a high school starter, Filley always betters the ball. She doesn't draw a lot of attention to herself, but the wins she produces speak to her impact."

Filley has committed to play volleyball on an athletic scholarship at Auburn University beginning in the fall of 2014.

"Without question, Alexa is deserving of recognition as the nation's best high school volleyball player based on her statistics on the field and the impact her accomplishments have had on Assumption's success," said Gatorade Vice President, Brand Marketing Morgan Flatley. "But she is also a shining example to peers and aspiring young athletes of what a leader and a student-athlete should be. She represents everything we hope for in a Gatorade Player of the Year recipient."

The Gatorade Player of the Year program annually recognizes one winner in the District of Columbia and each of the 50 states that sanction high school football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross country, boys and girls basketball, boys and girls soccer, baseball, softball, and boys and girls track & field, and awards one National Player of the Year in each sport. The selection process is administered by USA TODAY High School Sports and the Gatorade high school sports leadership team, which work with top sport-specific experts and a media advisory board of accomplished, veteran prep sports journalists to determine the state winners in each sport.

Former notable Gatorade National Players of the Year include:

• Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Peyton Manning
• WNBA all-time leading scorer and rebounder Lisa Leslie
• NFL all-time leading rusher Emmitt Smith
• Kansas City Royals Cy Young award-winner Zach Grienke

For more information on the Gatorade Player of the Year program, including nomination information, a complete list of former winners, and future announcement dates, visit the Gatorade Player of the Year Web site at http://playeroftheyear.gatorade.com, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GatoradePOY or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/Gatorade.

About Gatorade

The Gatorade Company, a division of PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP), provides sports performance innovations designed to meet the needs of athletes at all competitive levels and across a broad range of sports. Gatorade Thirst Quencher® is backed by more than 40 years of research and is scientifically formulated and athletically proven to quench thirst, replace fluids and electrolytes, and provide carbohydrate energy to enhance athletic performance. The company's product portfolio is built around the G Series™, a 1-2-3 approach to athlete nutrition and hydration before (Gatorade Prime 01™), during (Gatorade® Perform 02 and G2® Perform 02), and after (Gatorade Recover 03™) training or competition. For more information, please visit www.gatorade.com.             

About PepsiCo

PepsiCo offers the world's largest portfolio of billion-dollar food and beverage brands, including 18 different product lines that each generate more than $1 billion in annual retail sales.  Our main businesses – Frito-Lay, Quaker, Pepsi-Cola, Tropicana and Gatorade – also make hundreds of other nourishing, tasty foods and drinks that bring joy to our consumers in over 200 countries.  With more than $43 billion in 2008 revenues, PepsiCo employs 198,000 people who are united by our unique commitment to sustainable growth, called Performance with Purpose.  By dedicating ourselves to offering a broad array of choices for healthy, convenient and fun nourishment, reducing our environmental impact, and fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace culture, PepsiCo balances strong financial returns with giving back to our communities worldwide.  For more information, please visit www.pepsico.com.

About USA TODAY Sports Media Group

The USA TODAY Sports Media Group encompasses all sports initiatives across USA TODAY Sports and Gannett's more than 100 well-known local media brands. It also includes the sports photography wire service USA TODAY Sports Images, USA TODAY High School Sports and the hundreds of sites within USA TODAY Sports Digital Properties such as thebiglead.com and mixed martial arts site MMAjunkie.com, among others. USA TODAY is owned by Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI).

SOURCE The Gatorade Company