Frantz, Driscoll, Sauls Named SLC All-Academic
December 17, 2009
ARLINGTON, Texas – The UT Arlington volleyball program was well represented on the Southland Conference All-Academic teams, which the league announced Thursday. Sophomore Tara Frantz was selected first team while redshirt sophomore Christy Driscoll and junior Bianca Sauls were each named to the second team.
Central Arkansas junior Chloe Smith was named the SLC Volleyball Student-Athlete of the Year for the second consecutive season.
UT Arlington had the second most student-athletes receive recognition with three, as they followed Central Arkansas who had five, including four on the first team.
Frantz, an outside hitter from Santa Fe, Texas, was an automatic selection after earning first team All-SLC this season. She became the first UTA sophomore named first team All-Conference since 2002 and led UTA with 232 kills and 2.76 kills per set.
Frantz was named to a pair of all-tournament teams in 2009 and recorded the top hitting percentage for a Maverick in a single match hitting .500 (15 kills – 3 errors – 24 attacks) against TCU. She led the team in kills nine times and recorded at least 10 kills in 14 matches.
Driscoll, a middle blocker from Keller, Texas, is a two-time selection to the Academic All-SLC team, also earning second team honors in 2008. Driscoll started in 26 matches for the Mavs and finished second on the team with five block solos, 70 block assists, 75 total blocks and averaging 0.82 blocks per set. She led UTA in blocks five times and tallied a season-high 12 kills in four sets against UTSA.
Sauls, a junior outside hitter from Pflugerville, Texas, was an honorable mention All-SLC pick and was a preseason second team selection. Sauls was selected to two all-tournament teams during the season and finished second on the team with 215 kills, 2.11 kills per set and with 290 digs. She was the only Maverick player to record over 200 kills, 100 assists, 200 digs and 50 blocks.
Sauls notched 19 kills in four sets against Illinois State, which was the most kills in a match by any UTA player this season. She was the team leader in kills eight times and led the team in digs on six occasions.
The All-Academic teams are voted on by head coaches, sports information directors and academic/compliance administrators from each Southland Conference university. Student-Athletes must possess a 3.0 cumulative GPA, have completed one full academic year at the nominating institution and participated in at least 50 percent of the team’s competition to qualify for the all-academic squad.
For more information on Mavericks Volleyball check out their official website @ http://www.utamavs.com/sports/
