Venne Wins Jostens Trophy As D-III Player of Year To Receive Trophy March 18 in Salem, Va.

SELINSGROVE, (Pa.) - Susquehanna University senior power forward Kristen Venne (Shillington/Governor Mifflin H.S.) was the recipient of the Josten's Trophy as the Division III Women's Basketball Outstanding Athlete of the Year Thursday at the Salem (Va.) Civic Center. The recipient of the Jostens Trophy must exhibit excellence in basketball, academics and community service, with all nominations being made by the Chief Executive Officers of the participating NCAA Division III institutions.

Venne was selected by the 30-person national selection committee and received the award, along with men's Jostens Trophy winner Michael Schantz of Hamilton (N.Y.) College, at the Salem, Va., Rotary Club Meeting. The 64-pound trophy stands nearly two feet tall and features an eight-inch crystal basketball. She becomes the first Division III Player of the Year in any sport at Susquehanna.

In association with the trophy presentation, the Rotary Club of Salem, Va., awarded a $1,000 scholarship in the names of the award recipients to their respective institutions.

"To say the least, I'm surprised and overjoyed to be the recipient of the Jostens Trophy. I think every Division III basketball player dreams about winning such an award and I'm truly grateful to Jostens, the Rotary Club of Salem, and the committee for this honor," said Venne. "I obviously couldn't have won it without the hard work and dedication shown by both my coaches and teammates, as well as all the support by my parents, relatives, friends and teachers."

"Kristen did things that went beyond the realm of normal Division III players this season. You think you know your players and what they can do, but Kristen had me shake my head on very many occasions throughout her career, but particularly this year," said 12th-year Susquehanna women's head coach Mark Hribar. "She was an intense player on the basketball court all four years, and I know she was equally as intense about her academics and other activities. We are truly proud of her."

"We've obviously had other Susquehanna student-athletes achieve great things during our history, but I would have to think Kristen's award has to be one of the greatest since it celebrates excellence in basketball, academics and community service," said Susquehanna Director of Athletics Don Harnum.

Kristen's Credentials

A three-year All-American who was recently named to the Kodak All-America Team and the GTE College Division Academic All-America First Team, Venne was a MAC Commonwealth League First Team All-Star for the fourth time in her four-year career. The 5-9 Venne senior led her team into the NCAA Division III Tournament for the first time since 1993 before finishing 17-10. She finished the season leading the team in both scoring (21.4 ppg) and rebounding (9.4 rpg) - ranking second in the MAC and eighth in Division III in scoring, and fifth in the conference in rebounding. She was also second on the team, third in the MAC and 19th in Division III field goal percentage (57.3%, 219 of 382). Her 579 points and scoring average were the second best in a season at Susquehanna (Records: 586 points, Deb Yeasted, 1984-85; 29.8 avg., Lyn Jones, 1980-81).

She scored in double figures in each of her final 41 games, and 98 times in her 100 collegiate contests, while finishing second in Susquehanna women's history in career scoring (1,929 points) and third in rebounding (894). She tied for first in MAC modern history (since 1993-94) in career scoring average (19.3 ppg - tying Jarra Rusnock, Albright, 1994-98), is third in both field goal percentage (54.6%) and rebounds (8.9 per game), and fourth in free throw percentage (77.0%).

Along the way this season, Venne made the Division III Online Team of the Week five times and earned MAC Commonwealth League honors eight times - four times as Player of the Week. She was also the Player of the Month for February by The Women's DIII News, and was the Columbus Multimedia Mid-Atlantic Region Player of the Week four times. She was also named Most Valuable Player of the Days Inn Gettysburg Invitational in January, and made the All-Tourmament Teams at two other events this season.

Off the court, Venne has a 3.70 cumulative grade-point average (out of a possible 4.0) as a psychology major. A past Presidential Fellow who has made the Dean's List all seven semesters on campus, she's been inducted into Omicron Delta Kappa (national leadership honor society), Psi Chi (psychology honor society) and Alpha Lambda Delta (freshman honor society). Recently selected for Who's Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges, she is doing her senior thesis on the employee satisfaction scale of the Susquehanna faculty.

Venne has been active in community service since high school, volunteering at elderly centers and pre-schools prior to coming to Susquehanna. On-campus, she previously joined her Kappa Delta sorority to work with the Shamrock Project for less-fortunate children, helped clean their "adopted" portion of Route 15, and visited the elderly at Rathfon's Nursing Home. She's also volunteered her time at the Agapeland Pre-School and the Selinsgrove Center. Her practicum also involved her working 110 hours at Northumberland Human Services Center, and the Penn State-Geisinger Medical Center. Venne is also one of the chairs for Susquehanna's 40th anniversary celebration of women's athletics at Alumni Weekend on June 4-6.

She is the daughter of Richard and Ann Venne of Reading.

Jostens Trophy History

The Jostens Trophies are being presented in conjunction with the NCAA Division III Men's and Women's Basketball Final Fours, which are being held this Friday and Saturday, March 19-20. The men's final four is in the Salem Civic Center.

This is the second-year of the award, which is named after the Minneapolis, Minn., company that is the leading provider of products and services that help people recognize achievements and affiliations throughout their lives. The award is co-sponsored by Josten's and the Rotary Club of Salem, Va., which believes their motto of "Service Above Self" mirrors the Division III philosophy of the student-athlete.

Alicia Moore of Emory University was the first women's Jostens Trophy recipient in 1998. She was on the Selection Committee members this year, as well as former University Chaplain and current Bethany (Ks.) College President Chris Thomforde.