OMAHA, Neb. - Five WAC volleyball players have earned All-America honors by the
American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) it was announced today.
Hawai?i outside hitter Jamie Houston was a second-team honoree, while
teammate Kanani Danielson was a third-team selection. Meanwhile, the
Rainbow Wahine's Aneli Cubi-Otineru and Dani Mafua, and New Mexico State's Krystal
Torres were honorable mention honorees.
Houston earns second-team honors after leading her team to the NCAA Regional Finals. She averaged 4.05 kills, 1.78 digs and 0.75 blocks per set and posted 10 or more kills in 25 matches
this season. She posted five double-doubles on the season, was named to three all-tournament teams and was MVP of two. This is Houston's second time to be honored as an All-American, as she was a third-team selection as a sophomore.
One of just two freshmen on the All-America teams, Danielson averaged 3.02 kills and 2.91 digs per set. The West Region Freshman of the Year, she ranked seventh in the WAC in both hitting percentage and kills, and ninth in digs. Danielson had a team-best eight double-doubles and was named to three all-tournament teams during her rookie campaign.
Cubi-Otineru averaged 2.41 kills and 2.27 digs per set. She ranked second in the WAC with 0.32 service aces per set and 10th with a .268 hitting percentage. She had five double-doubles on
the season.
Mafua led the WAC with 11.20 assists per set and guided the Rainbow Wahine to a .283 hitting percentage on the season.
She had 30 or more assists in 21 matches this
season, 40 or more assists in 12 matches and 50 or more assists in six
matches.
Torres led the Aggies to their first-ever NCAA
Tournament win with 4.41 digs per set. She had 10 or more digs in 32 of
34 matches and had 20 or more digs seven times.
The selections were made by the AVCA Division I All-America Committee: chair ? Debbie Kirch, Green Bay; Andy Banachowski, UCLA; Keylor Chan, Northwestern; Joe Getzin, Mississippi; Barry Goldberg, American; Christy Johnson, Iowa State; Mike Jordan, New Mexico State; Jolene Nagel, Duke. The AVCA Awards Chair is New Hampshire head volleyball coach Jill Hirschinger.
The complete list of All-America teams is below.
2008 AVCA Division I All-America First-Team
| Player |
Institution |
Pos. |
Yr. |
Ht. |
Hometown |
| Foluke Akinradewo *^@ |
Stanford |
MB |
Sr. |
6-3 |
Plantation, Fla. |
| Cynthia Barboza *^ |
Stanford |
OH |
Sr. |
6-0 |
Long Beach, Calif. |
| Hana Cutura # |
Calif. |
OH |
Jr. |
6-4 |
Zagreb, Croatia |
| Ashley Engle $ |
Texas |
RS/Opp. |
Jr. |
6-3 |
Yorba Linda, Calif. |
| Nicole Fawcett *^@ |
Penn State |
OH |
Sr. |
6-4 |
Zanesfield, Ohio |
| Alisha Glass # |
Penn State |
S |
Jr. |
6-0 |
Leland, Mich. |
| Christa Harmotto *$ |
Penn State |
MB |
Sr. |
6-2 |
Aliquippa, Pa. |
| Megan Hodge *^ |
Penn State |
OH |
Jr. |
6-3 |
Durham, N.C. |
| Destinee Hooker # |
Texas |
OH |
Jr. |
6-4 |
San Antonio, Texas |
| Alix Klineman # |
Stanford |
OH |
So. |
6-4 |
Manhattan Beach, Calif. |
| Jordan Larson %^ |
Nebraska |
OH |
Sr. |
6-2 |
Hooper, Neb. |
| Stephanie Lynch |
Purdue |
MB |
Sr. |
6-3 |
New Albany, Ind. |
| Lauren Paolini % |
Texas |
MB |
Sr. |
6-5 |
Ann Arbor, Mich. |
| Nellie Spicer *^ |
UCLA |
S |
Sr. |
5-10 |
Barrington, Ill. |
2008 AVCA Division I All-America Second-Team
| Player |
Institution |
Pos. |
Yr. |
Ht. |
Hometown |
| Sydney Anderson |
Nebraska |
S |
So. |
6-0 |
Sandy, Utah |
| Blair Brown |
Penn State |
RS/Opp. |
So. |
6-5 |
Purcellville, Va. |
| Laura DeBruler |
Illinois |
OH |
So. |
5-10 |
Downers Grove, Ill. |
| Brook Dieter |
Minnesota |
OH |
So. |
6-1 |
Bloomington, Minn. |
| Neticia Enesi |
Oregon |
MB |
Jr. |
6-1 |
The Dalles, Ore. |
| Jamie Houston ! |
Hawai’i |
OH |
Sr. |
6-1 |
Huntsville, Ala. |
| Carli Lloyd |
California |
S |
So. |
5-11 |
Bonsall, Calif. |
| Kaylee Manns |
Iowa State |
S |
Jr. |
5-10 |
Topeka, Kan. |
| Gorana Maricic # |
Oregon |
OH |
Sr. |
6-3 |
Subotica, Serbia |
| Tamari Miyashiro % |
Washington |
DS/Lib. |
Jr. |
5-7 |
Kaneohe, Hawai’i |
| Tara Mueller |
Nebraska |
OH |
So. |
6-0 |
Scottsdale, Ariz. |
| Jessica Swarbrick #! |
Washington |
MB |
Sr. |
6-0 |
El Dorado, Calif. |
| Arielle Wilson |
Penn State |
MB |
So. |
6-3 |
Broadview, Ill. |
| Lexi Zimmerman |
Michigan |
S |
So. |
5-10 |
Barrington, Ill. |
2008 AVCA Division I All-America Third-Team
| Player |
Institution |
Pos. |
Yr. |
Ht. |
Hometown |
| Lori Baird |
Utah |
MB |
Sr. |
6-2 |
Murray, Utah |
| Anna Cmaylo + |
Santa Clara |
MB |
Sr. |
6-4 |
Napa, Calif. |
| Kanani Danielson |
Hawai’i |
OH |
Fr. |
5-10 |
Ewa Beach, O’ahu |
| Jeanne Fairchild |
New Mexico |
OH |
Sr. |
6-1 |
Albuquerque, N.M. |
| Jessica Fine |
UCLA |
DS/Lib. |
Sr. |
5-6 |
Tarzana, Calif. |
| Lauren Gibbemeyer |
Minnesota |
MB |
So. |
6-2 |
St. Paul, Minn. |
| Jenna Hagglund |
Washington |
S |
So. |
5-10 |
West Chester, Ohio |
| Danielle Hepburn |
Clemson |
MB |
Sr. |
6-2 |
Miami, Fla. |
| Nataly Korobkova % |
Kansas State |
RS/Opp. |
Sr. |
6-3 |
Krasnoyarsk, Russia |
| Ashley Mass |
Iowa State |
DS/Lib. |
So. |
5-8 |
Muskego, Wis. |
| Jana Matiasovska |
Louisville |
OH |
Sr. |
6-6 |
Bratislava, Slovakia |
| Sammi McCloud |
Saint Louis |
RS/Opp. |
Jr. |
6-2 |
Columbia, Ill. |
| Kelly Murphy |
Florida |
S/H |
Fr. |
6-2 |
Wilmington, Ill. |
| Julie Rubenstein |
Pepperdine |
OH |
Sr. |
6-3 |
Camarillo, Calif. |
* indicates 2007 AVCA First-Team All-America selection
^ indicates 2006 AVCA First-Team All-America selection
# indicates 2007 AVCA Second-Team All-America selection
$ indicates 2006 AVCA Second-Team All-America selection
@ indicates 2005 AVCA Second-Team All-America selection
% indicates 2007 AVCA Third-Team All-America selection
! indicates 2006 AVCA Third-Team All-America selection
+ indicates 2005 AVCA Third-Team All-America selection
2008 Division I AVCA Freshman of the Year: Kelly Muphy, Fla., Setter/Hitter
2008 Division I AVCA Player of the Year: Announced at AVCA All-America/Players of the Year Banquet on Dec. 19, 2008
2008 AVCA Division I Honorable Mention All-AmericansAshley Adams (Samford, RS/Opp., Sr.)
Megan Argabright (Western Kentucky, MB, Sr.)
Ashley Asberry (Middle Tennessee, MB, Jr.)
Kylie Atherstone (Cal Poly, OH, Sr.)
Katelyn Barbour (Morehead State, S/Opp., Sr.)
Mekana Barnes (Colorado State, MB, Sr.)
Stephanie Barry (Delaware, DS/Lib.,Jr.)
Whitney Behrens (Saint Louis, DS/Lib., Jr.)
Ivana Bozic (UAB, OH, Sr.)
Heather Brooks (North Carolina, MB, Jr.)
Kelly Broussard (Wichita State, DS/Lib., Sr.)
Lane Carico (Miami, OH, Fr.)
Stephanie Champine (Austin Peay, OH, Jr.)
Lucy Charuk (Houston, MB, So.)
Leslie Clark (Middle Tennessee State, S, Jr.)
Kori Cooper (Nebraska, MB, Jr.)
Britnee Cooper (Louisiana State, MB, Jr.)
Kallie Corbin (Liberty, S, Jr.)
Anell Cubi-Otineru (Hawai’i, OH, Jr.)Elyse Cusack (Fla., DS/Lib., Jr.)
Amy DeGroot (San Diego, OH, Jr.)
Brianna Eskola (North Carolina, DS/Lib., Jr.)
Justine Farmer (Houston, OH, Sr.)
Lindsay Fletemeir (Dayton, MB, Jr.)
Bridget Fonke (Saint Louis, OH, Jr.)
Ashley Fornstrom (Colorado State, S, Sr.)
Nikki Fowler (Tennessee, OH, So.)
Marcela Gurgel (South Fla., OH, Jr.)
Victoria Henson (Iowa State, OH, So.)
Ellen Herman (Ohio, OH, Jr.)
Jaclyn Houston (Cal Poly, MB, Sr.)
Jessica Houts (Creighton, MB, Jr.)
Christina Kaelin (Notre Dame, RS/Opp., Jr.)
Lauren Kellerman (UC Irvine, OH, Sr.)
Talisa Kellogg (Georgia Tech, OH, Sr.)
Valeria Kovaleva (St. John’s, S, Sr.)
Justine Landi (Louisville, RS/Opp., Jr.)
Wioleta Leszczynska (St. John’s, S, Sr.)
Jen Linder (Tulane, MB, Sr.)
Dani Mafua (Hawai’i, S, So.)Brittany Malicoat (Valparaiso, DS/Lib., Sr.)
Elena Martinez (Louisiana State, DS/Lib., Sr.)
Callie Miller (Georgia Tech, MB, Sr.)
Brittany Moore (Cal State Fullerton, OH, Sr.)
Karyn Morgan (Rice, OH, Sr.)
Rachael Moss (Duke, OH, Jr.)
Natalie Mulikin (Wake Forest, MB, Sr.)
Kelsey Murphy (Clemson, S, Jr.)
Jessie Nevitt (Cincinnati, MB, Sr.)
Sonja Newcombe (Ore., OH, Jr.)
Julia Noe (Western Kentucky, S, Sr.)
Jourdan Norman (Duke, MB, Sr.)
Queen Nzenwa (Kentucky, MB, Sr.)
Angie Porche (Valparaiso, OH, Jr.)
Lia Proctor (Clemson, OH, Jr.)
Sara Radosevic (Tulane, OH, Sr.)
Yarimar Rosa (Fla. International, OH, Jr.)
Jalicia Ross (Marshall, MB, Sr.)
Whitney Roth (Saint Louis, S, Jr.)
Sarah Rumley (Kentucky, S, Jr.)
Meredith Schamun (Rice, S, So.)
Erica Short (Indiana, OH, Sr.)
Nevena Stefanov (UAB, S, Sr.)
Emily Stockman (Wichita State, OH, Jr.)
Rubena Sukaj (American, OH, Sr.)
Christine Tan (Minn., DS/Lib.So.)
Emillie Toone (Utah, MB, Sr.)
Krystal Torres (New Mexico State, DS/Lib., Sr.)Naomi Washington (Long Beach State, MB, Jr.)
Brooks Webster (Ala., OH, Jr.)
Bridget Wells (Tulane, RS/Opp., Sr.)
Felicia Willoughby (Va. Tech, MB, So.)
Lena Yee (St. John’s, DS/Lib., Sr.)