Kansas Jayhawks
Gabby Simpson - Volleyball - Kansas Jayhawks
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Gabby Simpson

Position Right-Side Hitter / Setter
Height 6'3''
Class Senior
Hometown Colorado Springs, Colo.
High School Doherty HS
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OVERVIEW

  • Graduated from KU in May 2018 and is pursuing a graduate degree during her senior season
  • Redshirted during the 2017 season after transferring from Colorado
  • Has experience as a right-side hitter and a setter
  • Three-year starter at Colorado who earned All-Pac-12 honors in 2015 and 2016
  • Has extended family in the Lawrence area.

AWARDS & HONORS

  • All-Big 12 Second Team [2018]
  • Academic All-Big 12 First Team [2018]
  • Preseason All-Big 12 [2018]
  • AVCA All-Pacific South Region Honorable Mention [2016]
  • Two-time All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention [2015, 2016]
  • Two-time Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week [9/21/2015, 10/19/2015]
  • Pac-12 All-Freshman Team [2014]
  • Colorado/Omni Hotels Invitational MVP [2015]
  • Pac-12 All-Academic Honorable Mention [2015, 2016]
  • Rice adidas Invitational All-Tournament Team [2015]

2018 (SENIOR)

  • Named to the 2018 All-Big 12 Second Team and Academic All-Big 12 First Team
  • Played in all 27 matches (104 sets) with 26 starts and led KU in assists (558), assists per set (5.37)
  • Logged KU’s only triple-double of the season against Kansas State (Nov. 14) and finished with 10 kills, 46 assists and 14 digs
  • Finished fourth on the team in kills (152), kills per set (1.46) and points (219.5)
  • Tallied the third-highest block total (97) and dig total (208)
  • Notched eight double-doubles in 2018:
    • 32 assists and 10 digs vs Dayton (Aug. 31)
    • 10 assists and 13 digs at Oklahoma (Sept. 26)
    • 20 assists and 10 digs vs No. 4 Texas (Oct. 10)
    • 10 kills and 42 assists at West Virginia (Oct. 31)
    • 45 assists and 10 digs at No. 5 Texas (Nov. 10)
    • 10 kills, 46 assists and 14 digs vs Kansas State (Nov. 14)
    • 37 assists and 10 digs at Iowa State (Nov. 21)
    • 29 assists and 11 digs vs Oklahoma (Nov. 24)
  • Topped the .400 attack percentage mark four times, including a season-high .429 (8-2-14) clip against Loyola Marymount (Sept. 8)
  • Eight matches with double-digit points and tallied 13.0 points twice – at Oklahoma (Sept. 26) and Kansas State (Nov. 14)
  • Double figure assists in 20 matches and finished the season with a 10-consecutive match streak
  • Finished with a team-high four aces in a single match against No. 4 Texas (Oct. 10)
  • Made her debut in a KU uniform with 12 assists, eight kills, one ace, six digs and five blocks during a five-set win at Arkansas (Aug. 24)
  • Recorded her first double-double as a Jayhawk during a five-set win over Dayton (Aug. 31) with 32 assists and 10 digs

2017
Redshirted during her first season at KU.

2016 (JUNIOR AT COLORADO)
Earned All-Pac-12 and AVCA All-Pacific South Region honorable mention honors during her junior season at Colorado … Started in all 22 matches she played in and saw time in 87 sets where she recorded 215 kills on a .215 hitting percentage, 477 assists, 10 aces, 203 digs and 56 blocks for 254.5 points … Recorded 16 double-doubles and a CU record seven triple-doubles … Also set the CU record for most consecutive triple-doubles with four … Her seven triple-doubles tied for fourth in the nation and led the Pac-12 Conference … Missed the first three matches of the season and the final five matches of the season due to injury … Helped lead the Buffs to upsets over No. 13 Penn State (Sept. 3) and No. 17 Illinois (Sept. 4) … Recorded 10 kills, 25 assists, eight digs and two blocks against Penn State … The following night, she handed out a season-best 30 assists with eight digs and eight kills against the Illini … Posted Colorado’s first-ever 20-20 kill-assist double-double with 22 kills and 21 assists against Arizona (Sept. 25), adding 19 digs and six blocks against the Wildcats.

2015 (SOPHOMORE AT COLORADO)
One of CU’s biggest offensive threats during her sophomore season at Colorado, tallied 419 kills and 488.0 points, second on the team … Ranked 10th in the Pac-12 Conference in kills per set (3.41) and ninth in points per set (3.97) … In conference-only matches, ranked ninth in kills per set (3.53) and 10th in points per set (4.01) … Finished the year with 419 kills, 100 assists, 26 aces, 210 digs and 83 blocks … Started in all 32 matches for the Buffs and played in 123 of 124 sets … The Buffs began the season running a 6-2 offense, with Simpson setting and hitting … CU switched to a 5-1 offense a couple weeks into the season, moving Simpson to the right side … Named to the Rice adidas Invitational All-Tournament team (Sept. 11-12) after notching 35 kills in three matches (11 sets) … Named the Omni Invitational MVP and the Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week after guiding CU to a 4-0 record, picking up 66 kills in four matches, averaging 4.61 kills per set … In the first match of the weekend, she hammered a then-career-high 21 kills against Montana State (Sept. 18) and hit .372 … She also hit .370 later that day against Weber State with 16 kills … Tallied 21 kills in a five-set loss against top-ranked USC (Oct. 9) … Named the Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week for the second time after collecting a career-best 25 kills and .405 hitting efficiency in CU’s first-ever win against Stanford (Oct. 18).

2014 (FRESHMAN AT COLORADO)
Made her collegiate debut as one of Colorado’s most versatile athletes, playing both right side and setter positions … Earned co-Most Improved honors at the team’s postseason banquet … Had 13 matches with 20 or more assists on the season … Finalist for CU’s Female Freshman of the Year award … Named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team … Started in 33 of 34 matches and saw action in 131 of 135 sets … Recorded 184 kills, which was fourth on the team, and also handed out 1,691 assists, the second best on the team … Ranked third for the Buffs with 20 aces and 231 digs … Recorded CU’s first triple-double since 2002 against Washington State (Nov. 16) with 10 kills, 10 assists and 15 digs … Made her collegiate debut against Northwestern (Aug. 29) and recorded a season-best 14 kills and five aces for 19.0 points … Handed out a season-high 48 assists in a win over Butler (Sept. 13).

USA VOLLEYBALL / INTERNATIONAL
In the summer of 2016, competed as a member of the Pac-12 All-Star Team in China and competed with the USA Volleyball Collegiate National Training Team in Europe … In the summer of 2015, trained and competed with the USA Volleyball Collegiate National Training Team.

HIGH SCHOOL / CLUB
A high school All-American on the court and a National Honor Society member in the classroom at Doherty High School in Colorado Springs … As a senior, was named to the AVCA’s Under Armour All-America Second Team and earned a spot on Volleyball Magazine’s Fab-50 list … PrepVolleyball.com named her to its Senior Aces (No. 15) as well as to its All-America team … Helped Doherty to a seventh-place finish at the Colorado State High School Championships with the Spartans finishing the season 21-6 … Named to the All-State 5A, All-Area 5A/4A and All-Colorado Springs Metro League first teams … Also awarded recognition on the Cherry Creek and Cheyenne Mountain Volleyball All-Tournament teams … As a junior, helped guide the Spartans to the state championship title with a perfect 29-0 record … Named to the All-Area 5A/4A and All-Colorado Springs Metro League first teams and to the Cherry Creek and Cheyenne Mountain Volleyball All-Tournament teams … Listed as one of PrepVolleyball.com’s Top 50 Junior Recruits and was named to the AVCA Phenom List … As a sophomore, she was named PrepVolleyball.com’s Sophomore 79 highest honorable mention, as well as to the All-Area 5A/4A and All-Colorado Springs Metro League second teams … As a freshman she was named PrepVolleyball.com’s Frosh 59 honorable mention … Member of the Colorado Juniors Volleyball Club for six years … Named a Rocky Mountain Region All-Star in 2013 when she was the MVP as her team won the 2013 Puerto Rico U20 National Championship … The team also placed fifth at USA Volleyball Junior Nationals where she was named to the all-tournament team … Simpson has also been involved with USA Volleyball as a member of the 2012 and 2013 Youth National Training Teams.

ACADEMICS
Currently pursuing a graduate degree in digital and mass media at KU … Graduated in May 2018 with a degree in communication studies from the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences at the University of Kansas … Also studied strategic communications at the University of Colorado with an emphasis in advertising … Two-time Pac-12 All-Academic honorable mention honoree in 2015 and 2016.

PERSONAL
Born Gabrielle Simpson in Colorado Springs, Colorado … Daughter of Rick and Serena Simpson … Has two older sisters, Taylor and Cierra, and one younger sister, Riley … Her dad, Rick, played basketball at Louisiana Tech … Her mom, Serena (née McCall), played basketball at UMKC … Played with her two older sisters, Taylor and Cierra, at Colorado in 2014 … Played with older sister, Cierra, for three seasons at CU (2014-16).