Salber named A-R-C Scholar-Athlete of the Year finalist
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – Simpson College volleyball graduate Marissa Salber has been named a finalist for the 2022-23 Johanna Olson Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award, as announced by the American Rivers Conference.
Salber joins Thea Lunning (Central, golf and triathlon), Kassie Parker (Loras, cross country and track and field), and Sydney Illg (Wartburg, softball) as this year's finalists. All four athletes will go before the full group of nine faculty athletics representatives for review and vote, with the winner slated to be announced on Jan. 9, 2024.
A four-year member and three-year captain of the Storm volleyball team, Salber graduated summa cum laude in December 2022 with a degree in management. She garnered academic all-conference honors three times, was a 2022 College Sports Communicators Academic All-District honoree, and earned the prestigious NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship to attend the University of Nebraska College of Law.
On the court, Salber earned first team all-conference recognition in 2022 after landing on the honorable mention squad as a junior. She compiled 1647 assists, 514 digs, 174 kills, 65 aces and 56 blocks from her setter position and played a crucial role in the Storm reaching the A-R-C Tournament twice after a seven-year postseason drought.
Salber was actively involved in campus activities during her three and a half years at Simpson, holding leadership roles as Senior Class President and Head of Student Organizations and Activities Committee. Salber served as volleyball's SAAC representative, logged over 150 community service hours as a Wesley Service Scholar, and was an Interfaith Fellow, Culver Fellow and Pre-Law Society member.
About the Johanna Olson A-R-C Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year award
The American Rivers Conference Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year award is named in honor of the late Johanna Olson, a former cross country and track & field student-athlete at Luther College who was the inaugural recipient of the award. Olson battled brain cancer for over 15 years before her fight ended on January 3, 2013 at age 33. She was originally diagnosed with a brain tumor as a college freshman in 1997 but went on to win the 2000 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championship three years to the day after her initial brain surgery. In addition to the national title in cross country, she won three Conference Individual Championships and three Conference Most Valuable Runner awards (1999, 2000, 2001). In track and field, she was the 2001 Conference Most Valuable Performer, earning All-America honors in the 3,000- and 5,000-meter runs. Olson was also a member of the 2021 distance medley relay team that captured the indoor national title. She was named the United States Track Coaches Association (USTCA) regional and national Athlete of the Year in both cross country and track & field in 2000-01. In 1999, Olson was presented the Honda Awards Inspirational Athlete of the Year after returning from radiation treatments to compete at the national level.
