ECAC Announces Corvias Women's Volleyball Players of the Week
DANBURY, Conn. – The Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) has announced the Corvias Women’s Volleyball Players of the Week for the week ending Oct. 23.
DIVISION II
Offensive Player of the Week
Beka Smith – Gannon University, R-Jr., RS
Smith amassed 27 kills and had a .407 hitting percentage in 54 attempts and blocked six balls in two key victories for the Lady Knights. Gannon rallied from down two sets to beat Edinboro in five and break its 17-match win-streak. Smith played a pivotal role, smashing 16 kills in the comeback win. Gannon improved to 20-3, 9-2 in the conference.
Defensive Player of the Week
Amy Serowski – King University, Jr., DS
Serowski anchored the defense for the Tornado in a week where they went 2-1, winning both of their Conference Carolinas matches. The junior started the week with 28 digs in a 3-2 win at Belmont Abbey College, King’s first road win against Belmont Abbey since 2011 and the second win ever in the Wheeler Center. She followed that with a team-high nine digs a in a 3-0 win over Pfeiffer University and later tallied 17 digs in a five-set match against Georgia College. For the week Serowski tallied 54 digs and averaged 4.15 digs per set.
Rookie of the Week
Samantha Nidini – Pace University, Fr., S
Nidini continued a remarkable rookie campaign this week with 122 assists (10.17 per set) and 44 digs (3.67 per set) across three matches and 12 games. She had assist totals of 43, 34 and 45 this week, as well as dig totals of 17, 10 and 17 for a trio of double-doubles.
DIVISION III - METRO
Offensive Player of the Week
Kayla Gleason – U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, Jr., OH
Gleason lifted the Mariners to a 5-0 week (4-0 Skyline), as her side dropped just one set along the way. She averaged 3.73 kills per set on .245 hitting, while passing 2.2 digs per frame. The junior picked up a career and USMMA season-best 17 kills against both Mount Saint Vincent and Sage. In the latter contest, a four-set victory over the Gators, Gleason completed a double-double with 16 digs.
Defensive Player of the Week
Rebecka Zabilowicz – Stockton University, Sr., DS
Zabilowicz recorded 4.9 digs per set on the week for a total of 83 in five matches. She hit double figures in four of the five matches, including a week-high 33 digs in a win over DeSales. She added 17 against Swarthmore, 13 against Catholic and 11 against Scranton.
Rookie of the Week
Kyleigh Kappas – U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, Fr., S
Kappas sent the Mariners to a 5-0 week in just 16 sets played, averaging 10.81 assists, 2.88 digs and 0.81 service aces over that stretch. She passed 30-plus assists in all four Skyline victories, including a 42-assist, 21-dig (season-best) effort in four sets over Sage.
DIVISION III – NEW ENGLAND
Offensive Player of the Week
Alycia Rackliffe – Framingham State, Sr., RS
Rackliffe averaged 14.7 kills, seven digs, and 3.3 blocks with a .366 hitting percentage in a 2-1 week for the Rams. She had 12 kills and six digs with a .455 hitting percentage in the 3-0 win over Salem State and 18 kills, 10 digs and four blocks in the 3-0 setback to WPI. In a 3-0 win over Keene State the senior had 14 kills, five digs and six blocks.
Defensive Player/Rookie of the Week
Anagabrielle Sanchez – Springfield College, Fr., Lib.
Sanchez put together another incredible week defensively as Springfield went 3-1, including knocking off the region's top-ranked team during the New England Challenge. In four matches, the first-year libero totaled 79 digs, averaging 6.58 per set, had zero reception errors in 37 attempts, and anchored a defense that held its opponents to a combined .150 hitting average. Sanchez opened up the week with a 25-dig performance in just three sets as the Pride swept WPI, before notching 22 digs which helped limit the region's top-ranked team, Tufts, to just a .105 hitting percentage resulting in their first straight-set loss of the season. On Saturday, Sanchez posted 17 digs and five assists in a three-set sweep of Middlebury before turning in 15 digs against Williams.
DIVISION III – NORTH
Offensive Player of the Week
Joelle Goldstein – Ithaca College, Jr., OH
Goldstein had a huge week in helping Ithaca to a 3-0 record, in the process securing the second seed at the upcoming Empire 8 Tournament. She opened the week with a double-double effort with 14 kills and 11 digs in a five-set thriller against SUNY Oneonta. In the process, Goldstein surpassed the 1,000 career-kill milestone. Goldstein continued her strong play in Saturday's final Empire 8 crossover of the season. She picked up 12 kills and seven digs in IC's three-set win over Utica, while she notched her second double-double of the week with 13 kills and 12 digs against Houghton.
Defensive Player of the Week
Samantha Wolf – Morrisville State, Fr., DS
Wolf helped lead the Mustangs to a perfect 4-0 week that included three big conference wins, racking up 55 digs as Morrisville only dropped three-of-15 sets on the week. Wolf tallied 49 of those digs while averaging 4.08 digs per set across the three conference matches this weekend, starting with 16 digs in a 3-1 victory over Keuka Saturday and nine digs in a 3-0 sweep over Cazenovia later that day. She then recorded 24 digs in a thrilling 3-2 win over Wells Sunday that left the Mustangs 11-2 in NEAC play and clinched their first-ever trip to the NEAC Tournament. Wolf, who also contributed offensively with 12 assists and four aces on the week, now leads the conference with 482 digs.
Rookie of the Week
Shea Norton – SUNY Canton, Fr., OH/RS
Norton averaged 3.00 kills to go with 0.81 digs per set in five matches this week for the Roos. The freshman had eight kills each in three set matches versus St. Lawrence, Bridgewater State and UMass Boston. Norton struck for 12 kills apiece against both Amherst and Trinity.
DIVISION III - SOUTH
Offensive Player of the Week
Caroline Hanson – Marymount University, So., S
Hanson helping the Saints to a 3-0 week with stellar all-around performances that included her third triple-double of the season. Hanson put away 22 kills, 74 assists, four service aces, 43 digs and nine total blocks in wins over Catholic, Southern Virginia and Frostburg State. Against Catholic, she notched a triple-double with 11 kills, 28 assists and 18 digs while also adding five block assists and a service ace. She notched double-doubles in the other two contests, with 19 assists, 10 digs, five kills, two service aces and two block assists vs. Southern Virginia, and 27 assists, 15 digs, six kills, and two blocks against Frostburg State. Her three triple-doubles on the year ranks seventh in the nation.
Defensive Player of the Week
Molly Higgins – Carnegie Mellon University, Sr., Lib.
Higgins picked up 50 digs in Carnegie Mellon's three victories at home at the Carnegie Mellon Mini Invitational. She led the defense in all three matches and had a weekend-high 22 digs in a 3-1 win against Messiah. In the team's 3-0 win against Elizabethtown, Higgins collected four service aces.
Rookie of the Week
Mehra den Braven – Swarthmore, Fr., OH
Den Braven, the MVP of the weekend's Garnet Classic, helped lead the regionally-ranked Garnet to a 5-0 record without dropping a set. The freshman outside hitter averaged 3.73 kills and 2.47 digs per set while hitting .277 and chipping in seven total blocks. In Saturday's match against Colby, den Braven recorded 12 kills and only one error in 17 attempts for an impressive .647 mark.
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