Four Brenau athletes honored as Conference Players of the Week

GAINESVILLE -- Brenau University swimmer Michelle Billeaud, cross country runner Utami Ketchem, soccer player Jenny Knibbs, and volleyball player Sydney Koon, have all been honored as Conference Players of the Week in the respective sports by the Southern States Athletic Conference for their performances from the week of Sept. 21-28.<br /> <br /> Billeaud, a junior business major from Carencro, La., competed in Brenau's home opener swim meet by winning both the 50 Butterfly in 26.58 and the 100 Butterfly in 59.18, while placing second in the 200 IM in 2:21.19. Her performance helped the fourth-ranked Golden Tigers capture first place in the meet.<br /> <br /> Ketchem, a sophomore health science major from Buford, placed fourth overall out of 88 runners at the University of North Georgia Invitational this past Saturday. The junior from Flowery Branch, Georgia set a personal record of 19:24 in the 5 kilometer race to secure her third straight top-five finish this season.<br /> <br /> For Knibbs, a junior conflict resolution and legal studies major from Doncaster, England, this represented her second straight conference offensive player of the week award. She has had two consecutive strong weeks of play. Against local opponent Georgia Gwinnett College, Knibbs secured a hat trick three goals in the second half to help propel the U.S. 16th ranked soccer team to a 4-2 victory. Knibbs is currently ranked 25thin the nation in goals per game.<br /> <br /> Koon, a senior mass communication major from Duluth, helped lead the volleyball team to a three-game winning streak with her outstanding play. The outside hitter collected double-digit kills in each of the three matches and racked up 44 kills, 25 digs, seven assists and three blocks for the weekend. Koon is ranked 19th in the nation in kills per set (3.69) and has the squad sitting in third place in the Southern States Athletic Conference.