March 29, 2010
2010 Volleyball Magazine Fab-50 List
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Volleyball Magazine has released its 2010 Fab 50 list with a pair of incoming Wildcats earning the distinction. Katie Dutchman (Del Mar, Calif./Torrey Pines) and Stephanie Holthus (Burlington, Ill./Central), both of whom will compete for Northwestern this season, mark the first time a pair of Wildcats from the same class have been named to the Fab 50.
Dutchman was a starter at middle blocker since her sophomore season in high school, helping lead the Falcons to the Avacado League Co-Championship in 2009 after runner-up finishes in 2007 and 2008 and received second team All-League honors as a junior. A three-time Student-Athlete of the Week, she has spent the past four years as a member of the Encinitas Wave club team, which captured a number of tournament honors during that span.
Holthus joins the Wildcats after a solid prep career at Central High School in Burlington, Ill., where she was a four-year starter at outside hitter. A two-time All-Area Player of the Year, she notched over 400 kills with a .500 hitting percentage as a senior in leading the Rockets to its third Big Northern East Division title, a year after helping Central to the 3A state finals in which she set the 3A single-match state tournament record with 17 kills. Named one of the top 30 players of 2010 by Volleyball Magazine, Holthus was named team captain of the USA Volleyball Junior National A2 Red Team where she helped the team to a first-place finish at the High Performance Championships.
Wildcats Commence Spring Schedule
Head coach Keylor Chan's Wildcats commence their spring schedule Monday, March 29, as the Wildcats look to build on their sixth-place Big Ten finish in 2009. Northwestern will compete in four spring tournaments, beginning this Saturday, April 3, at Marquette before heading down Sheridan Ave. for the Loyola Tournament on Saturday, April 10.
Northwestern then hosts its Spring Challenge on Saturday, April 17 at Welsh-Ryan Arena. The Wildcats open the day taking on Illinois-Chicago at 9:30 a.m. before facing UW-Milwaukee at 11 a.m. and Northern Illinois at 1:45 p.m. The spring schedule then concludes with a trip to Cincinnati, Ohio, on Saturday, April 24.