Gatorade® National Volleyball Player Of The Year: Lexi Sun

SOLANA BEACH, Calif., Jan. 25, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- In its 32^nd year of honoring the nation's best high school athletes, The Gatorade Company today announced Lexi Sun of Santa Fe Christian High School (Solana Beach, Calif.) as its 2016-17 Gatorade National Volleyball Player of the Year. Sun was surprised with the news by Olympian and Pro Beach Volleyball Player April Ross.

Check out the surprise video here.

"It was exciting for me to be able to surprise Lexi with the Gatorade National Volleyball Player of the Year award, especially because she is such a deserving student-athlete," said Ross. "Lexi is a well-rounded individual who has already accomplished so much on and off the court, so it's an honor for me to welcome her into the prestigious Gatorade Player of the Year family."

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 Sun as the nation's best high school volleyball player. A national advisory panel comprised of sport-specific experts and sports journalists helped select Lexi from nearly 430,000 high school volleyball players nationwide. Lexi is now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade Female High School Athlete of the Year award, to be presented at a special ceremony prior to The ESPY Awards in July.

The 6-foot-2 senior outside hitter amassed 630 kills, 288 digs, 60 blocks and 45 service aces this past season, leading the Eagles (32-8) to the Open Division semifinals. A 2016-17 Under Armour First Team All-American, Sun is a member of the U.S. Women's Junior National team. She was named the ALL-USA Player of the Year by USA TODAY and is ranked as the No. 1 recruit nationally in the Class of 2017 by PrepVolleyball.com.   

A devoted member of her church community, Sun has volunteered locally on behalf of a homeless shelter and youth volleyball camps, and has participated in a service-mission trip to build a home for a family in Mexico.

Sun has maintained a 3.83 GPA in the classroom.

"At least one Pac-12 coach commented that Lexi Sun could have started for him when she was in eighth grade," said John Tawa, Publisher of PrepVolleyball.com. "She hit extreme angles with no fear and was an intimidating blocker even then. The ensuing years have seen her add strong serving and determined back row play to her repertoire. Together with her always-improving hitting and blocking game, Sun now is truly terrifying for any opponent to face, even on an international stage. She will take the college world by storm."

Sun has signed a National Letter of Intent to play volleyball on scholarship at the University of Texas this fall.

"Lexi is an exceptional student-athlete who has earned recognition as the nation's best high school volleyball player while also excelling in the classroom and making a difference in her community," said Gatorade Senior Vice President and General Manager Brett O'Brien. "Lexi's statistics on the court speak for themselves, but even more impressive is the impact she has had on her teammates and the example she sets for younger student-athletes. Lexi represents everything we look to celebrate in a Gatorade Player of the Year recipient."

As a part of Gatorade's cause marketing platform "Play it Forward," Sun also has the opportunity to award a $1,000 grant to a local or national youth sports organization of her choosing. She is also eligible to win one of twelve $10,000 spotlight grants for her organization of choice, which will be announced throughout the year.  

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 the Gatorade high school sports leadership team in partnership with the Gatorade Player of the Year Selection Committee, 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
• 2015 NBA first overall pick Karl-Anthony Towns
• Three-time WNBA champion Maya Moore
• Four-time track & field gold medalist Allyson Felix
• Three-time beach volleyball gold medalist Kerri Walsh
• Three-time Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw

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://www.gatorade.com/poy, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GatoradePOY or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/Gatorade.

SOURCE The Gatorade Company