Pitt right-side hitter Olivia Babcock has already established her dominance in college volleyball, judging by back-to-back AVCA Player of the Year awards and a host of other accomplishments.
By being named an AAU Sullivan Award finalist Tuesday, Babcock earned further respect as one of the premier amateur athletes in the United States.
The Sullivan Award, established in 1930, honors the most outstanding collegiate, Olympic or similarly elite athlete in the U.S.
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Liv ranks among the nation's elite as an AAU Sullivan Award Finalist!
Vote for her once a day at the link below!
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Babcock, who was a semifinalist for the honor following her sophomore campaign at Pitt, is joined as a 2026 finalist by Indiana quarterback and 2025 national champion Fernando Mendoza, Duke freshman forward Cameron Boozer, figure skaters Ilia Malinin and Alysa Liu (who won a combined three gold medals at the 2026 Winter Olympics), rugby player Ilona Maher and UConn guard Azzi Fudd, a 2025 NCAA champion with the Huskies.
Public voting to determine the finalists began at 10 a.m. Tuesday and continues through 11:59 p.m. March 5.
The top finalists will be honored at the award ceremony April 7 at the New York Athletic Club.
Nebraska libero Lexi Rodriguez captured the award in 2025 and is one of three volleyball players to do so, along with Stanford’s Kathryn Plummer (2018) and Wisconsin’s Lauren Carlini (2016).
Other recent winners of the Sullivan Award include Caitlin Clark (2022-23), Simone Biles (2020), Ezekiel Elliott (2014) and Tim Tebow (2007).
Babcock, who returns for her senior season at Pitt this fall, has led the Panthers to the Final Four in three consecutive seasons, winning Pittsburgh Regional Most Outstanding Player honors every year.
This past season, on top of winning her second straight ACC Player of the Year award and first-team All-American honors from the AVCA for the third consecutive year, Babcock shattered Pitt’s single-season kills record (555 by Wendy Hatlestad in 2003), finishing with 646.
