Stuart takes game to nation’s capital

Published 12:00 pm Wednesday, November 22, 2006

The Spartan senior signs up to play for George Washington.

After four successful years on the Spartan volleyball court, Hannah Stuart is taking her game from one Washington to the next.

The senior outside hitter and four-year varsity starter will continue her volleyball career in Washington D.C., signing a letter of intent to go to George Washington University, a Division I school.

“I’m really excited about this,” she said. “It feels so good. I’m so relaxed now with this decision. I’m so content and happy to be part of the Colonial program.”

Head coach Julie Miller is glad that Stuart can take her game to the next level.

“I’m happy for Hannah,” she said. “She’s put in a lot of hard work over the years so it’s nice to see her get rewarded for it.

“Academically and volleyball wise, it’s a good fit for her and it sounds like she’s got a possibility to make an impact if she works hard.”

It’s the second straight year that a player from the Spartan volleyball team has signed to a D-I program.

Miller’s daughter Michelle was the first to do so, and is currently a redshirt sophomore at the University of New Mexico.

Stuart, 18, wrapped up another stellar season with a fourth straight trip to state and a fourth place trophy.

She led the team in kills, digs and aces and was recently named the Metro League Mountain Division co-MVP and was also named to the Mountain Division all-league first team.

It’s the second straight year that Stuart was voted league MVP, and the third straight year she was named to the All-Metro first team.

Stuart said she had received attention from other colleges in the Big Sky Conference, the West Coast Conference, the Big East and several Ivy League schools.

She also considered walking on at the University of Washington, but wasn’t sure whether she would get any playing time.

Plus, the educational programs at George Washington were too enticing for Stuart to pass up.

Stuart spent a few days with the team in the summer and made her official visit to George Washington in September.

“For me, academics are so important,” she said. “At a certain point I had to decide whether I would be playing, because the University of Washington was number one last year, so I don’t know how much playing time I would see as a walk on.

“With this team (George Washington), I think I’m really going to be able to make an impact. At the same time, (I can) be able to focus on academics. It’s the perfect fit for me. GW offered exactly what I wanted.”

The Colonials were 14-12 this season and went 6-7 in league play in the Atlantic-10 Conference, just missing out on the A-10 tournament.

Four seniors will graduate from this year’s team, while 11 will return for next season.

“I think it’s really going to be fun playing for them,” Stuart said. “The coaches are great and the girls are wonderful. They’re all wonderful people.”

Top school

The university is nationally ranked 52nd in U.S. News & World Report’s list of top universities in the U.S.

It was founded in 1821 as The Columbian College when President George Washington bequeathed land in his will to start a university.

The school, just two blocks from the White House, is home to a top-ranked law school, a top ranked business school and the Elliott School of International Affairs, one of the most recognized schools in that field.

The alumni list is long and distinguished, from CEOs of several major corporations and numerous U.S. Governors and Senators to the late Boston Celtics coach and team president Red Auerbach, former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, former FBI director J. Edgar Hoover, former investigative lawyer Ken Starr and former Secretary of State and retired Army Gen. Colin Powell all earned degrees from the university.

Stuart is no slouch in the classroom; she holds a 3.99 GPA, takes several AP courses, has been on the honor roll every semester and is a member of the National Honor Society and Mu Alpha Theta, the National High School and College Mathematics Honor Society.

She plans on enrolling in the school of engineering and applied sciences to study either mechanical engineering and art, or computer science and art.

Her ultimate goal is to work as a products designer or at a 3D animation company such as Digital Main or Pixar. But Stuart doesn’t want to emphasize one activity over the other.

“I think they’re going to compliment each other really well,” she said. “The girls and coaches really support you in academics and at the same time, the school supports you in athletics.”

She’ll also have the support of numerous people close by.

“A lot of my family live in New Jersey and I have an old coach who lives in D.C., so I know people,” Stuart said.

“It is a big distance but I’ve always wanted to go somewhere for (an) adventure,” she continued. “I love Washington D.C. I love every part of it.”