Duke Places Three On All-ACC Volleyball Team
December 3, 2009
DURHAM, N.C. - Duke volleyball players Rachael Moss, Becci Burling and Kellie Catanach were each named to the 2009 All-ACC Volleyball Team, and freshman Christiana Gray earned a spot on the ACC All-Freshman Team, the Atlantic Coast Conference announced Thursday.
Moss, Burling, Catanach and Gray helped the Blue Devils (27-5, 17-3 ACC) earn their fifth straight bid to the NCAA Tournament and the program's fourth consecutive 25-win season. The quartet made up part of the best defensive team in the ACC, as Duke held all teams to a conference-low .156 hitting percentage.
Moss, who is making her fourth straight trip to the NCAA Tournament along with her fellow seniors, becomes only the third player in Duke history to be named to the All-ACC Volleyball Team four times. As a senior, she leads Duke with 351 kills, 903 attacks and 13 double-doubles. A 5-10 outside hitter from Cypress, Calif. (Los Alamitos), she has left her mark on the Duke record books and ranks third all-time with 1,674 kills, fourth with 1,544 digs and fourth with 167 service aces. Also a two-time Academic All-America - including First Team in 2009 - she has a 3.94 GPA as a Political Science major and Theater minor.
Burling, a 6-1 middle blocker, posted her second straight 300-kill season while also leading Duke with 114 blocks in her junior campaign. A native of Monument, Colo., Burling made her first appearance on the All-ACC Team this year and has set career highs in kills and blocks this season. She has put back 10 blocks in two different matches this year while hitting at least 10 kills 20 times and recording a double-double with 10 blocks and 14 kills in a 3-2 win at Clemson.
Catanach, meanwhile, has directed one of the ACC's best offenses and topped 1,200 assists for the second straight year. Under her direction, Duke ranked among the top three in the ACC with a .259 hitting percentage and 13.85 kills per set. Catanach has dished out 1,232 assists in her second season as Duke's starter, averaging 10.53 per game, while also improving as an attacker with 100 kills and a .248 hitting percentage. An All-East Region and an ACC All-Freshman choice in 2008, Catanach has also collected 209 digs, 61 blocks and 28 service aces this season.
Gray made an immediate impact in her first season as a Blue Devil, starting all but one match while leading Duke with a .320 hitting percentage. Gray put back 110 blocks as a freshman, including 11 outings with at least five stops. A 6-5 middle blocker, she hit over .300 in 18 matches, .400 or better 17 times and .500 or better nine times.
Those four and the rest of the Blue Devils will look to extend Duke's season this Friday, Dec. 4, when Duke takes on Tennessee in the first round of the 2009 NCAA Volleyball Tournament in Knoxville, Tenn. With a win, the Blue Devils would then advance to the second round for the fifth straight year where they would face the winner of No. 11-seed Minnesota and Louisville.
Willoughby, Baarendse earn ACC accolades
Willoughby named All-ACC for third consecutive year
BLACSKBURG, Va. - Junior Felicia Willoughby and freshman Cara Baarendse both received Atlantic Coast Conference accolades, the conference announced on Thursday, as Willoughby garnered first-team All-ACC honors, while Baarendse earned a spot on the ACC All-Freshman squad.
Willoughby notched All-ACC accolades for the third straight year, after receiving first-team recognition in 2008 and second-team honors in 2007. The Pleasanton, Calif., native is the only Hokie ever to earn All-ACC honors three consecutive seasons.
Willoughby led the squad with 139 blocks and ranked second on the team in kills with 332 this season. Her 1.17 blocks per set average ranked third in the conference, and she sits in second and fourth place in the Tech record books in career blocks and career hitting percentage, respectively. She owns 428 total blocks in her career and is striking at a .320 clip in her time with the Hokies.
Baarendse garnered ACC All-Freshman honors, after leading Tech in hitting percentage, striking at a .354 clip in 2009. She recorded 280 kills, third-most for the Hokies, and 67 blocks, second most on the team. She held the fifth-best hitting percentage in the conference, as well as the top season hitting percentage among Tech freshmen all time, and third highest in school history among all Hokies.
The selection of Baarendse to the ACC All-Freshman squad marks the fourth consecutive year a Hokie has been named to the team. Sophomore Erin Leaser earned ACC All-Freshman honors last year, while Willoughby and senior Taylor Parrish received the accolade in 2007 and 2006, respectively.
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2009 All-ACC Volleyball Team
Name Yr. Pos. School
Sandra Adeleye Fr. MH Clemson
Didem Ege Sr. DS Clemson
Kelsey Murphy Sr. S Clemson
Lia Proctor Sr. OH Clemson
Becci Burling Jr. MB Duke
Kellie Catanach So. S Duke
Rachael Moss Sr. OH Duke
Brianna Barry Sr. MB Florida State
Mira Djuric Sr. OH Florida State
Rachael Morgan So. OH Florida State
Jordana Price Sr. MB Florida State
Chrissy DeMichelis Sr. OH Georgia Tech
Monique Mead Fr. OH Georgia Tech
Mary Ashley Tippins Jr. S Georgia Tech
Lane Carico So. OH Miami
Cassie Loessberg Sr. DS Miami
Simone Asque So. OH Virginia
Felicia Willoughby Jr. MB Virginia Tech
Player of the Year: Brianna Barry, Sr., MB, Florida State
Defensive Player of the Year: Didem Ege, Sr., DS, Clemson
Coach of the Year: Chris Poole, Florida State
2009 ACC All-Freshman Volleyball Team
Name Pos. School
Sandra Adeleye MH Clemson
Alexa Rand MH Clemson
Christiana Gray MB Duke
Fatma Yildirim OH Florida State
Monique Mead OH Georgia Tech
Cara Baarendse MB Virginia Tech
Freshman of the Year: Monique Mead, OH, Georgia Tech
Asque Named to All-ACC Volleyball Team
Outside hitter honored among league’s best
GREENSBORO, N.C.- Sophomore Simone Asque was named to the All-Atlantic Coast Conference Volleyball Team, as announced Thursday by the league office.
The Chicago, Ill., native led the Cavaliers with 416 kills this season and ranked third in the ACC, averaging 3.65 kills per set. She earned back-to-back ACC Player of the Week honors following a two-week stint in which she landed 87 kills (5.44 kps), including a career-high 29 in a five-set victory over Miami, to lead the squad to three wins in four matches.
Asque’s 29 kills against the Hurricanes tied her for the ninth-best single match output in Virginia history, while her 82 swings in the match was one shy of setting an individual match record for attack attempts.
The outside hitter concluded the season with 416 kills, 211 digs and 48 blocks. She registered double-digit kills in 23 matches and collected a team-high seven double-doubles. In addition, she tallied double-digit kills in 11 of the final 12 matches of the season and reached 20 kills five times throughout that stretch.
To open the season, Asque was named to the Texas A&M Invitational All-Tournament Team after recording 29 kills and 25 digs in three matches. She was also tabbed Preseason All-ACC.
Asque becomes the first Cavalier to earn All-ACC honors since All-American Sarah Kirkwood did so in 2007. Asque was also named to the ACC All-Freshman Team last year.
2009 All-ACC Volleyball Team
Name Yr. Pos. School
Sandra Adeleye Fr. MH Clemson
Didem Ege Sr. DS Clemson
Kelsey Murphy Sr. S Clemson
Lia Proctor Sr. OH Clemson
Becci Burling Jr. MB Duke
Kellie Catanach So. S Duke
Rachael Moss Sr. OH Duke
Brianna Barry Sr. MB Florida State
Mira Djuric Sr. OH Florida State
Rachael Morgan So. OH Florida State
Jordana Price Sr. MB Florida State
Chrissy DeMichelis Sr. OH Georgia Tech
Monique Mead Fr. OH Georgia Tech
Mary Ashley Tippins Jr. S Georgia Tech
Lane Carico So. OH Miami
Cassie Loessberg Sr. DS Miami
Simone Asque So. OH Virginia
Felicia Willoughby Jr. MB Virginia Tech
Player of the Year: Brianna Barry, Sr., MB, Florida State
Defensive Player of the Year: Didem Ege, Sr., DS Clemson
Coach of the Year: Chris Poole, Florida State
2009 ACC All-Freshman Volleyball Team
Name Pos. School
Sandra Adeleye MH Clemson
Alexa Rand MH Clemson
Christiana Gray MB Duke
Fatma Yildirim OH Florida State
Monique Mead OH Georgia Tech
Cara Baarendse MB Virginia Tech
Freshman of the Year: Monique Mead, OH, Georgia Tech
