Volleyball Voices

College Volleyball Players Honored Week 6: Southern Conference, Allie Bettinger

Freshman Allie Bettinger Named SoCon Player of the Month

--- Freshman outside hitter garners conference honors for September ---

 

Oct. 7, 2009

 

SPARTANBURG, S.C. ---- Freshman outside hitter Allie Bettinger has been named the SoCon Player of the Month for volleyball for the month of September, announced the Southern Conference office Wednesday. The award highlights excellence among student-athletes in the first full month of competition in their respective sports for the 2009-10 academic year. The players are nominated by each member institution and selected by the conference office.

 

Bettinger led Samford in kills and digs throughout the month of September while also posting five double-doubles in the month. She notched a career-high 20 kills twice while also posting a career-high 17 digs twice. The Willow Park, Texas native hit .395 to start out the month against Southeast Missouri State, recording 18 kills on 38 attempts with only three errors. She averaged 3.37 kills per set while notching just over two digs per set.

 

“Allie is a young outside that, due to injury, has been thrust into a role where we get her a lot of balls and she takes a ton of swings in important situations,” Samford head coach Derek Schroeder said. “I am very proud of the changes she has made in her style of play and the role she has taken in our first contact. Allie is a special kid and I am excited about her future here at Samford.”

 

 

Bettinger will join the Bulldogs as they take to the road for their first trip of the season in the Southern Conference. This weekend, Oct. 10-11, Samford will take on Western Carolina and Appalachian State Saturday and Sunday. Both matches will begin at 1 p.m.

 

*** SAMFORD BULLDOGS ***

Week 7: Eastern Washington University Women's Ashley Hamilton Named Scholar Athlete of the Month

Hamilton and King succeed on the field and in the classroom

Volleyball player Ashley Hamilton and cross country runner Kyle King have been selected by the Eastern Washington University athletics department as its Scholar-Athletes for the month of September.

Hamilton earned Big Sky Conference Player of the Week accolades on Sept. 28 after helping the team to 3-2 and 3-0 road wins over Idaho State and Weber State, respectively.

Earlier in the month, Hamilton attained All-Wildcat Classic accolades after contributing to EWU's 2-1 performance at that event, a pair of 3-1 wins over Houston and Nevada and a 3-1 loss to host Arizona, currently ranked 22nd nationally.

For the month, she had EWU's highest hitting percentage, .376 (57-13-117), to go with 9.12 assists per set. The Alpine, Utah, native contributed in other aspects of her game, as well, recording 1.61 digs, 0.56 blocks and 0.27 service aces per set in the 11 matches.

The senior has posted a 3.42 grade point average and is a biology major. Hamilton was named to the Big Sky All-Academic team each of the past two years.

King also had an outstanding month, highlighted athletically by Big Sky Athlete of the Week honors after helping the team to a first-place performance at the Clash of the Inland Northwest on Sept. 5. In that race, he finished the 6,000-meter course in a time of 20:28, placing second.

The sophomore also had a top performance on Sept. 19 at the Sundodger Invitational in Seattle, Wash.  During that 8,000-meter event, King finished fourth of 72 competitors with a time of 24:11.41. His placement helped the Eagles place third.

The sophomore is majoring in business administration and has, just like Hamilton, a 3.42 GPA. King also earned Big Sky All-Academic honors as a freshman in both cross country and outdoor track and field.  

Click here to read Q and A's with both Hamilton and King.

2009-10 Women's Scholar-Athletes
September - Ashley Hamilton, volleyball

2009-10 Men's Scholar-Athletes
September - Kyle King, cross country

College Volleyball Players Honored Week 7: Kerry Clavadetscher Named Ivy League Rookie of the Week

Hearst Selected to Weekly Honor Roll

 

 

NEW HAVEN, Conn. — With the Yale volleyball team coming off of a convincing straight-set victory over Brown in Friday’s Ivy League opener, the Ancient Eight has recognized freshman setter Kerry Clavadetscher (Seattle, Wash./Shorecrest) as the Ivy League Rookie of the Week. Clavadetscher, playing less than two complete sets in the sweep of the Bears, dished out a match-high 21 assists. She rounded out her statline with three digs and two blocks, including one solo effort.

 

For the season, Clavadetscher has been the second-most prolific setter in the Ivy League with an average of 9.67 assists per frame. The freshman has also contributed 2.22 digs per set and 12 blocks in 27 sets of action during the Bulldogs’ red-hot 11-1 start to 2009. Clavadetscher has also landed four service aces and dropped in 10 kills from the setter position.

 

Just five weeks into the 2009 campaign, Clavadetscher is already the fourth Yale player to earn a league-wide distinction this season. Seniors Cat Dailey, Alexis Crusey and Laurel Johnson all took home Ivy League Player of the Week honors during the non-conference schedule.

 

Sophomore Bridget Hearst was also honored this week as a member of the Ivy League Weekly Honor Roll. Hearst, playing in only two sets of the Yale sweep, had seven kills on 10 swings without an error for a scorching .700 hitting percentage. She also picked up two digs, landed a service ace and had a hand in two blocks, including one solo stuff.

 

Clavadetscher, Hearst and the Bulldogs are back in action this weekend for the first full weekend of Ivy League competition. Princeton visits the John J. Lee Amphitheater on Friday night for a 7 p.m. tilt, and Penn makes the trek to New Haven on Saturday afternoon for a 4 p.m. contest.

 

 

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College Volleyball Players Honored Week 6: CSF’s Neto Becomes First Freshman To Garner Big West Weekly Accolades In 2009

Irvine, Calif. - Kayla Neto guided Cal State Fullerton to a 2-0 mark against a pair of conference foes that the Titans previously held a 6-97 all-time

record against, earning her Big West Women’s Volleyball Player of the Week accolades. Neto becomes the first freshman to garner a weekly accolade this season, as well as becoming the second Titan to be named player of the week in the past three weeks.

In Friday’s sweep over Cal Poly, the Clarksburg, Calif., native was error-free as she blasted a game-high .600 hitting percentage with 15 kills on 25 attempts. She added four digs and two blocks in the Titans win that handed head coach Carolyn Zimmerman her 100th career victory. The win also marked the first time Cal State Fullerton defeated Cal Poly since 2004 and just the second time in their last 24 meetings.

The Following night the Titans swept their second opponent of the week, UC Santa Barbara, thanks in part to another stellar performance by Neto.

She committed just one error and collected 13 kills and a pair of blocks to lift Cal State Fullerton to a 2-1 mark in conference play.

For the week, Neto committed just one error from the floor in 47 swings, good for a .574 attack percentage. In the Titans’ 3-0 victories over the

Mustangs and Gauchos, she combined for 28 kills, five digs and four blocks.

Others nominated: Naomi Washington (Long Beach State), Juliane Piggott (UC Irvine), Brittney Murrey (UC Riverside)

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College Volleyball Players Honored Week 6: Alyssa Bennett Named NEC Conference Player of the Week

Bennett Named NEC Player of the Week
This is the sophomore’s first NEC weekly honor this season

Moon Township, Pa. – October 5, 2009 - Robert Morris University
sophomore setter Alyssa Bennett (Ramona, Calif. / Ramona) took home her
first Northeast Conference Player of the Week honor this season after
leading the Colonials to sweeping victories over league rivals Saint
Francis (Pa.) and Quinnipiac. Her efforts helped the Colonials start off
NEC play with a perfect 2-0 record.

Over the course of two matches Bennett was tied for first on the team
with 15 kills and led the team with a .560 hitting percentage. She was
also first on the team with 60 assists and was tied for first with seven
blocks. She started off her impressive week by capturing a match and
season high nine kills against the Red Flash of Saint Francis. She also
added 30 assists, registered a .500 hitting percentage and added three
blocks.

Her solid play continued into the Colonials match against Quinnipiac
the following day. She was the only player to record a double-double
with 30 assists and 10 digs and she led the match with four blocks and
registered a season-high hitting percentage of .667.

The Colonials return to action on Tuesday, Oct. 6 when they host
cross-town rival Duquesne at 7:00 p.m.

College Volleyball Players Honored Week 6: Maddie Hughes Named MAC Conference West Division Defensive Player of the Week

Maddie Hughes Named MAC West Division Defensive Player of the Week

Junior libero earns weekly honor for second time this season

DeKALB, Ill. – Northern Illinois volleyball junior libero Maddie
Hughes (St. Charles, Ill./North) was named Mid-American Conference West
Division Player of the Week on Monday for the second time this season
after helping the Huskies to their first conference win of the season
over the weekend.

“This is a nice honor for Maddie and for the NIU volleyball
program,” said NIU head coach Ray Gooden.  “We thought that she
did a really good job of getting prepared for the matches this week and
she turned it into a great weekend of play.”

Hughes led the NIU defense over the past week with 48 digs (6.86/set)
and no errors in 37 reception attempts in seven sets.  Against Western
Michigan, she tallied a career-best 34 digs and had no errors in 27
reception attempts.  In NIU's first league win of the season over Miami,
she had 14 digs and was errorless in 10 reception attempts.  She has now
had 20 or more digs in five of her last seven matches and has had
double-digit digs in all but two matches this season.  Hughes also leads
the MAC with 4.78 digs per set.

NIU returns to Victor E. Court this weekend for a pair of conference
matches. First up will be a 7 p.m CT contest against Central Michigan on
Friday and then NIU will face Eastern Michigan at 7 p.m. on Saturday.

-NIU-

College Volleyball Players Honored Week 6: Rita Welsh Named Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Week

Rita Welsh Named MAAC Defensive Player of the Week
Senior Honored for Second Time This Season

RIVERDALE, N.Y. - For the second time this season, Manhattan College senior middle blocker
Rita Welsh (Collegeville, Pa.) has been named Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC)
Defensive Player of the Week, the conference office announced on Monday.  Welsh tallied 16
blocks (1.33 bps) in matches against Lafayette, Fairfield and Loyola last week.

In a non-conference loss to Lafayette on Wednesday night, Welsh tallied five blocks to go along with nine kills and a service ace.  She recorded four blocks (including two solos) in a loss to Fairfield on Friday night, then posted seven blocks to go along with 12 kills on .296 as the Lady Jaspers snapped their five-match losing streak with a five-set win over Loyola on Sunday
afternoon.

Welsh, who was also named MAAC Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 14, leads the
conference with 1.04 blocks per set.  She also paces the Lady Jaspers with a .240 hitting
percentage and ranks third on the team with 2.06 kills per set.

The Lady Jaspers (6-11, 2-4 MAAC) begin a five-match road trip with a 7 p.m. showdown at Marist
(9-8, 3-3 MAAC) on Friday.  On Sunday, Manhattan visits Siena (6-8, 4-2 MAAC) at 2 p.m.

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College Volleyball Players Honored Week 6: Jamiee Freeman Named Colonial Athletic Association's Defensive Player of the Week

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College Volleyball Players Honored Week 6: Jamiee Freeman Named Colonial Athletic Association's Defensive Player of the Week

Georgia State’s Jamiee Freeman Earns CAA Volleyball Player of the Week
honors

ATLANTA - Georgia State volleyball’s Jamiee Freeman has been named
CAA Defensive Player of the Week by the Colonial Athletic Association on
Monday afternoon. The true freshman scored a team season-high and
career-high 31 digs in the Panthers five-set victory over Hofstra on
Sunday.

“Jamiee's growth as a player has been amazing for someone in their
first collegiate season,” commented head coach Mike Webster. “To be
recognized by the CAA for her outstanding defensive play in a conference
with so many excellent talents is pretty special.  She has bought into
the team concept and is a crucial part of our success.”

Freeman scored her second career double-double on Sunday against the
Pride. Her 31 digs (6.2 per set) was the most digs in a match for State
since Christen Garcia scored a Panther all-time record 45 in 2005
against Eastern Kentucky.
Freeman added 10 kills in the match as Georgia State improved to 14-4
and 2-1 in CAA play. The Panthers are tied for second in the CAA
standings.
On Friday, the freshman scored five kills and zero errors and added 14
digs (3.5 per set) as the Panthers fell in a tough four-set match to
Northeastern.
The Athens, Alabama native has scored in double-digit digs in five of
her last seven matches.
For the week, Freeman averaged 5.0 digs per set.
It marked the second consecutive week that a Panther has earned CAA
honors. Last week, redshirt-sophomore Vineece Verdun earned offensive
player of the week honors after recording back-to-back career highs in
kills, leading State to a pair of victories.
Earlier this season, junior Ashley Jones was named co-Offensive Player
of the Week after leading the Panthers to the tournament title of the
Great 8 Volleyball Challenge presented by Residence Inn-Kennesaw on
September 8th.
The Panthers will travel to Virginia this weekend to face William &
Mary on Friday night at 7 p.m. State will then face VCU on Saturday
night at 7 p.m. before returning to Atlanta.
-www.georgiastatesports.com-

College Volleyball Players Honored Week 6: Destinee Hooker Named Big 12 Player of the Week for Third Time

Hooker garners Big 12 Player of the Week accolades 

Senior All-America outside hitter Destinee Hooker earns her third Big 12 honor of the year and the 10th of her career.

AUSTIN, Texas – Texas senior All-America outside hitter Destinee Hooker was named Big 12 Player of the Week after leading the Longhorns to victories over Texas A&M and Kansas State last week. Hooker’s award was her third of the season and the 10th player of the week honor of her career.

 

Hooker anchored No. 2 Texas’ attack last week, hammering out a Big 12-best 5.33 kills and 6.08 points per-set, while hitting at a .415 clip in two matches. The All-American added 2.83 digs per-set, three service aces and a pair of blocks to her stat line.

 

In Texas’ sweep of Texas A&M, Hooker registered 17 kills on .469 hitting and committed just two attack errors. She added a pair of service aces, 12 digs and a solo block to her all-around effort, recording her fifth kill/dig double-double of the season and the 18^th of her career.

 

Against Kansas State, Hooker recorded 15 kills on .364 hitting, committed just three attack errors and added five digs, a service ace, one assist and one block.

 

Hooker and her Texas teammates return to action on Saturday, Oct. 10 when they play host to Oklahoma at Gregory Gymnasium. First serve is set for noon Central.

College Volleyball Players Honored Week 6: Michala Kvapilova Named Colonial Athletic Association's Rookie of the Week

KVAPILOVA CAPTURES CAA ROOKIE HONOR 

RICHMOND, Va. – Virginia Commonwealth University freshman Michala Kvapilova (Liberec, Czech Republic) was named the Colonial Athletic Association’s Rookie of the Week Monday, an honor that followed her best week as a Ram. 

It’s the first league honor for Kvapilova, who led VCU to a 2-1 week, including wins over James Madison and Georgetown. 

The 6-1 outside hitter blasted 45 kills in 12 sets, an average of 3.75 per frame, and hit .295. In addition, Kvapilova added 1.75 digs and .42 blocks per set. 

In the Rams’ 3-2 loss to George Mason on Friday, Oct. 2, Kvapilova recorded a season-high 19 kills and 14 digs. She also had 15 kills and hit .478 at Georgetown on Wednesday, Sept. 29. 

Kvapilova leads to Rams into action on Wednesday, Oct. 7, when VCU hosts George Washington at 6 p.m. at the Verizon Wireless Arena. 

College Volleyball Players Honored Week 6: Greulich and Shives Named Horizon League Volleyball Players of the Week

Horizon League awards go to Cleveland State senior and Youngstown State junior

 

INDIANAPOLIS – Cleveland State University senior Beth Greulich has been named Horizon League Volleyball Offensive Player of the Week, while Youngstown State University juniorLaurie Shives has earned Defensive Player of the Week honors for the period of Sept. 28-Oct. 4.

 

Greulich, a right-side hitter from Troy, Ohio, collected 36 kills (4.00 kps) and hit .471 (36 K, 3 E, 70 TA) for the Vikings last week.  She also registered eight block assists en route to 40 points (4.44 pps).

 

Greulich helped CSU post a trio of 3-0 home wins last week -- Tuesday over Eastern Michigan University, Friday over the University of Illinois at Chicago and Saturday over Loyola University Chicago.

 

Shives, a defensive specialist from Grove City, Ohio, recorded 38 digs for a League-best 5.43 average.  She was also tagged with just one serve reception error in 47 chances for the Penguins.

 

Shives helped YSU pull off a 3-0 upset of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee on Friday and posted a match-high 25 digs against the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay on Saturday.

 

Youngstown State’s victory was its first over Milwaukee in 18 meetings since joining the League in 2001.  It also ended UWM’s string of 37 straight regular-season conference wins at the Klotsche Center.

 

Youngstown State (5-11, 3-3) will play two matches this week -- Tuesday against Wright State University and Wednesday vs. Cleveland State (14-5, 4-1).  The Vikings have three contests on this week’s slate, including home dates with Milwaukee on Saturday and Green Bay on Sunday.

 

Other Horizon League top performances (Sept. 28-Oct. 4)

Maggie Bonomini, Cleveland State, Senior, L -- 3-0 record, 9 SP, 44 Digs

Carmen Leitermann, Green Bay, Freshman, MB -- 2-0 record, 6 SP, 4 BS, 5 BA, 9 TB

Alyse Serritella, Loyola, Junior, L -- 1-1 record, 8 SP, 41 Digs

Angie Porche, Valparaiso, Senior, OH -- 1-0 record, 3 SP, 16 K, 35 TA, .400 Pct

Shaunda Sandifer, Wright State, Junior, MB -- 0-3 record, 14 SP, 60 K, 131 TA, .305 Pct, 16 TB

Ruth Boscaljon, Youngstown State, Senior, MH -- 1-1 record, 7 SP, 23 K, 61 TA, .262 Pct, 10 TB

College Volleyball Players Honored Week 6: Erin Skipper, Colonial Athletic Association Co-Offensive Player of the Week

RICHMOND, VA - The Colonial Athletic Association on Tuesday named William and Mary junior Erin Skipper (Yorktown, Va.) as a co-Offensive Player of the Week, after she led the Tribe volleyball team to a pair of five-set road wins in conference play. Skipper shared the award with Northeastern's Jessica Tchakuk. 

In both five-set matches against James Madison and George Mason, Skipper scored a season-high 23 kills, averaging 4.6 per set for the weekend. Against the Dukes on Friday night, she only had two attacking errors for a .438 attack percentage, and against the Patriots on Saturday, the junior made her kills on 66 attempts, a season-high for the conference so far in 2009. 

The Tribe returns to action this weekend, hosting Georgia State and UNC Wilmington on Friday October 9, and Saturday October 10th, respectively. Both matches in Kaplan Arena will take place at 7 p.m.

College Volleyball Players Honored Week 7: Yarimar Rosa SBC Conference Player of the Week

Rosa Picks Up Second Consecutive SBC Player of the Week Nod

Senior earns 11th career weekly honor after leading FIU to another 2-0 weekend

 

 

NEW ORLEANS - Senior Yarimar Rosa was tabbed the Sun Belt Conference Volleyball Player of the Week on Oct. 5 for the second straight week, according to a vote by the league's 13 head coaches. The honor is the 11th of its kind for the senior, a new Sun Belt record.

 

Rosa helped lead FIU to its third straight unblemished weekend as the Panthers defeated a pair of Sun Belt Conference rivals in WKU, 3-1  (24-26, 25-16, 26-24, 25-13), and Middle Tennessee, 3-1 (25-20, 27-29, 25-20, 26-24).

 

The Vega Baja, Puerto Rico, native tallied a team-high 43 kills on the weekend for a 5.38 kills per set mark and an attack percentage of .337. The outside hitter recorded a season-high 24 kills versus WKU on Friday and went on to tally 19 kills versus MTSU on Sunday. Rosa also contributed two assists and one service ace for the weekend and was active on the defensive end, notching 14 digs and two blocks as the Panthers out-dug WKU and MTSU and recorded a season-best 10.5 blocks against the Hilltoppers.

 

FIU is now 14-2 on the season and 4-0 in conference play, which marks the Panthers' best start in school history. FIU has lost just 12 sets on the year compared to 43 sets won and is currently on a seven-match win streak, as the Panthers have not lost a match since falling to nationally ranked Florida State on Sept. 12.

 

The Panthers return to action on Tuesday night when they play host to Florida Atlantic at 6:30 p.m. at the U.S. Century Bank Arena.

 

 

-FIU-

 

College Volleyball Players Honored Week 7: Chloe Goldman Named SEC Defensive Player of the Week

GOLDMAN PICKS UP SEC DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK LAURELS

UT Senior Collected 60 Digs in Three Matches

 

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – For the second consecutive week, the University of Tennessee volleyball team has had a player recognized by the league office as senior Chloe Goldman was tabbed the Southeastern Conference Defensive Player of the Week Monday afternoon. The award is the fifth of the 5-6 libero’s career after she earned the accolades three times last year and once in 2007.

 

Just a week after junior Nikki Fowler earned the conference’s offensive player of the week honors, Goldman helped the Lady Volunteers post an impressive 2-1 record in a trio of grueling road matches last week with her terrific play defensively. The Monterey, Calif., native collected a total of 60 digs in the three contests, as the Big Orange staged come-from-behind wins at both Louisville and South Carolina before suffering a 3-0 setback at No. 5 Florida.

 

Against the Cardinals last Wednesday, Goldman played a pivotal role in UT’s return from two sets down to victory, tallying a match-high 26 digs, in addition to flawlessly handling all 46 serves sent her way. Just two days later in Columbia, she recorded 26 digs once again, this time in just four sets, as the Big Orange shrugged off a first-set loss to win the next three. Once again, she was nearly perfect in serve reception, mishandling just one of 36 serves from the Gamecocks. In Tennessee’s final match of its grueling road trip, Goldman led the squad with eight scoops, had a season-high four assists and notched her third ace of the year.

 

For the weekend, she finished with a remarkable average of 5.00 digs per set, while passing at a .962 clip with just four reception errors in 104 attempts. Goldman is now only 39 digs away from becoming UT’s all-time leader in that category as well with a career total of 1,436.

 

The Lady Vols will be at home this weekend, as they will host Georgia (11-5, 2-3 SEC) and Auburn (11-5, 3-2 SEC). UT will take on the Bulldogs at 7 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 9, in a match slated to be televised live on SportSouth, before squaring off with the Tigers at 1:30 p.m. two days later. 

 

##LADY VOL VOLLEYBALL##