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Opposite Alvaro Gimeo led NJIT back into postseason contention and is now receiving the first national award of his college career.
Off the Block announced Monday that Gimeo was selected as the Springbak, Inc./Off the Block National Freshman of the Week.
Gimeo had both a match-high 13 kills on a .478 attack percentage and three aces in a series-opening sweep against Charleston on Saturday. He also finished with 15 kills while hitting .333 and added five digs as NJIT defeated Charleston in three games on Sunday to complete the series sweep.
With these weekend victories, NJIT moves within two matches behind Princeton for the final berth to the four-team EIVA Tournament.
Gimeo is the first NJIT player to earn National Freshman of the Week honors in the five-year history of the national award.
The National Freshman of the Week is presented each week during the regular season to the NCAA Division I-II men’s volleyball freshman who had the most outstanding performance. The winner is announced every Monday during the regular season on the Off the Block website, offtheblockblog.com.
Each of the five NCAA Division I-II men’s volleyball conferences have an opportunity each week to nominate one player for the National Freshman of the Week. In addition, fans and teams can nominate a player for the National Freshman of the Week by tweeting their nominee to the official Twitter account of Off the Block, @offtheblock11.
Off the Block is a website that started in January 2011 and has become the nation’s leader in college men’s volleyball coverage.
Springbak, Inc. is the official sponsor of the 2018 Freshmen All-American Team and National Freshman of the Week and produces high performance footwear used by professional athletes from the NFL, NBA, MLB and U.S. Olympic teams and the top college teams in the nation.
National Freshman of the Week honorable mentions
Gabi Garcia Fernandez, BYU — Fernanadez had a season-high five aces and led all players with 14 kills in a four-game victory against USC on Thursday.
Wyatt Harrison, UC San Diego — Harrison finished with a match-high 19 kills and added nine digs in a near upset five-game loss to No. 5/4 UC Irvine on Friday. He also had nine kills against the Anteaters in a three-game loss on Thursday to open the conference series.
Joel Schneidmiller, UC Irvine — Schneidmiller had a combined 29 kills in a two-match series sweep against UC San Diego last week, including a team-high 18 kills in a five-game victory on Friday. The freshman also had five blocks in the series finale.
Garrett Zolg, Loyola — Zolg had 43 assists and guided the offense to a .432 attack percentage as No. 6/6 Loyola swept its in-state rival No. 8/9 Lewis on Saturday. In addition, Zolg added five digs and two blocks in the victory that kept the Ramblers in sole possession of first place in the MIVA.