St John's University senior and T&T women's volleyballer Darlene Ramdin has been named one of ten finalists for the prestigious Lowe's Senior CLASS Award, as announced by the organisation last Wednesday.To be eligible, a student-athlete must be classified as a NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence-classroom, character, community and competition.An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
Ramdin, a middle-hitter who plays locally for Glamorgan was initially selected as one of 30 national candidates in late August and was chosen by a media committee as one of ten finalists.Nationwide fan voting begins immediately to determine a winner. Fans are encouraged to vote on either the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award website or the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award Facebook fan page through November 21. Fan votes will be combined with media and Division I head coaches' votes to determine the winner."It has been an honour and privilege to coach Darlene for the past four years," said 18-year head coach Joanne Persico."She epitomises everything good about college athletics and is a role model not only to her team-mates, but to her native country of T&T as well. She is a true representative of St John's volleyball, our athletic department and her university."
A communication arts major and three-time Big East Academic All-Star, Ramdin has maintained a 3.39 cumulative grade point average (GPA) and helped guide the Red Storm to two AVCA Team Academic Awards (2008-09, 2010-11) in her tenure.She is also a two-time recipient of the St John's University Athletic Director's Honour Roll: Bronze Medallion (Fall '09, Fall '10), which is awarded to a STJ student-athlete who earns a GPA between 3.0 and 3.49.A 2010 All-Big East Second Team performer and member of the 2008 Big East Championship squad, Ramdin became the seventh member of the 1,000-kill club this season and currently ranks sixth all-time in the category with 1,122 career kills.