Nov. 11, 2010
ATLANTA – Georgia Tech Volleyball Head Coach Tonya Johnson announced today that Courtney Felinski, Ashtaan Horton and Alexandra “Ali” Santi have signed national letters of intent during the early signing period. Felinski is a 6-2 outside hitter from Magnolia, Texas and Horton is a 6-2 middle blocker from Cedar Hill, Texas. Santi is a 5-11 setter from Honolulu, Hawaii.
“I’m really excited about our 2011 Class,” said Johnson. “This class is athletic, versatile, and will certainly add some more physicality to our squad. I look forward to them making our gym more competitive and contributing to the future success of our program.”
Felinski attends Magnolia High School and plays her club ball for the Texas Elite. She was on three different all-tournament teams this season and a member of the AVCA UnderArmour All-America Watch List. Other accolades this season include third-team preseason All-Greater Houston and honorable mention LoneStarVolleyball.com All-Texas team. Felinski helped lead her team to the state final four in 2008 as well as regional quarterfinal appearance in 2009 and district championship in 2010. Magnolia’s run in 2008 was its first trip to the state tournament since 1997.
Felinski was the 2009 Defensive Player of the Year and first-team all-county and all-district. A two-time Academic All-District selection, Felinski is ranked eighth in her high school class.
“Courtney is versatile and has the ability to play a couple of different positions for us,” said Johnson. “I’m excited to see her future development in our program.”
Horton attends Cedar Hill High School and plays club ball for MadFrog. She was a four-year varsity starter and led the team in blocks each season. While most awards have not been given out for 2010 yet, she has been a three-time all-district pick. She was named her district’s “Most Outstanding Attacker” in 2009 and the district “Most Outstanding Blocker” in 2008. As a freshman in 2007, she Horton was the recipient of her team’s “Newcomer of the Year” award. Horton also led her team to a district championship in 2008.
Horton was on the 2010 AVCA UnderArmour All-America Watch List and was also named the 2009 Prepvolleyball.com Classic’s “Outstanding Blocker.” A member of Prepvolleyball.com’s Soph 79 high honorable mention list, Horton was also a bronze medalist at the 2008 Junior Olympics.
“Ashtaan is very athletic and has great lateral foot speed,” added Johnson. “Her quickness and natural blocking ability will certainly help us and add depth to our middle blocker position.”
Santi attends Punahou High School and plays for the Imi Ike club team. Santi has led her school to a spot in the state championship in each of the last three seasons after winning league championships in 2008 and 2009. While most of the awards for this year have not come out yet, she was on the 2010 AVCA UnderArmour All-America Watch List and 2010 Senior Invitational All-Star team. A two-time, all-league selection, Santi led her team to three Interscholastic League of Hawaii championships.
Santi is also a stand-out player on the varsity basketball team where she led her team to a runner-up performance at the state tournament her junior year. In addition, she was a 2008 USA A2 High Performance team selection and a 2009 USA A2 Junior Team pick.
A member of the National Honors Society, Santi also volunteers at the Kaiser Hospital and Waikiki Community Center.
“Ali is a competitor and comes from a school with great volleyball tradition,” said Johnson. “Her work ethic and tough mentality will be a great asset to our program.”
