Sophomore women’s volleyball outside hitter Elmina Alic (Skokie, Niles West High School) has been selected as the Oakton Community College women’s student-athlete of the month for January. The student-athlete of the month is presented nine months during the year to one male and one female student-athlete displaying excellence in the areas of academics, athletics and campus involvement or service.

Her numbers on the court helped the Oakton Owls transform from a one-win team in 2017 to a team that finished 20-12 and advanced to the district semifinals in 2018. She averaged 1.92 kills per set, 1.71 digs per set and a .268 hitting percentage, earning spots on the NJCAA Region IV All-Region Team and the Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference (ISCC) Volleyball All-Conference Team.

Oakton volleyball head coach Miguel Calvillo said that Alic was part of the backbone of the team’s resurgence after missing the entire 2017 season with an Achilles injury.

“I’m so proud of Elmina and the way she returned from her injury last year,” Calvillo says. “She came from fear and played through that fear in her comeback. It says a lot about her character in that she chose courage over fear.”

Alic also shined in the classroom, earning a 4.0 GPA and President’s Scholar recognition for the fall semester while pursuing an associate of arts degree. President’s Scholars must be enrolled in at least six credit hours at course levels at 100 or above during a given term, earn a perfect 4.0 grade-point-average that term, be in good academic standing and meet standards of academic progress at the end of the term for which honors are being considered. She intends to transfer to a four-year college and pursue a degree in accounting.

“How she plays the game is how she approaches life. She strives for perfection, and in the academic world, a 4.0 GPA is perfection,” Calvillo adds. “I’m glad that she reached her goals and know she will keep it up.”