Birmingham, Ala. — With the 2010 Gulf South Conference volleyball regular season completed, the best players in the conference have been chosen for this year’s All-GSC teams.
Players were selected for the First or Second Team by vote of the league coaches. In all, 35 players were picked, with GSC East Division champion West Florida and GSC West Division champion Arkansas Tech leading the way with five honorees. Below are the winners of the individual honors, including Player of the Year, Freshman of the Year, and Coach of the Year.
EAST DIVISION HONORS
UWF’S JOHNSON WINS EAST DIVISION PLAYER OF THE YEAR
West Florida outside hitter Katie Johnson earned the GSC East Division’s Player of the Year award. She is just the second player in school history selected as the top player and first since 2007. She was a four-time Offensive Player of the Week, and helped the Argonauts to the East Division title and top seed in the GSC Tournament. Johnson leads UWF in kills (356) and service aces (41), both among the top-10 in the conference. She hit .276 with 278 digs and 31 blocks so far this season.
UNA’S RAYBURN EARNS EAST DIVISION FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR
North Alabama setter Hope Rayburn was named the East Division Freshman of the Year. Rayburn paced the Lions’ offense, leading them to an 8-2 mark in conference action and the Division’s No. 2 seed in the GSC Tournament. Her 11.19 assists per game leads the GSC and is 11th nationally. The rookie also has 69 kills, 190 digs, 15 service aces and 28 blocks on the season. Her 67 assists at Flagler on Sept. 11 are tops amongst GSC players in a single match this season.
UWF’S WOLTER EARNS COACH OF THE YEAR
West Florida head coach Melissa Wolter was named East Division Coach of the Year Award. Wolter also won this award in 2007. Wolter, who won her 200th career match this season, led the Argonauts to a fourth consecutive East Division title, posting a 25-6 regular season record, 9-1 in conference play. The team is currently on its longest winning streak of the season (10 games) and has been ranked nationally for six weeks during the 2010 campaign. UWF is currently No. 20 in the nation, the highest ranking it has earned this season.
WEST DIVISION HONORS
ATU’S VON LIENEN WINS PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Arkansas Tech middle blocker Sarah Von Lienen was selected as the West Division’s Player of the Year Award. She becomes the fifth player in Arkansas Tech history to win the award and the first since 2002. She was one of the dominant players for the Golden Suns, who have won a league-high 30 matches this season and earned the West Division’s top seed in the GSC Tournament. Von Lienen won three GSC Player of the Week honors this season (two offensive, one defensive) and led the top hitting team in the GSC in attack percentage (.339) and kills (373) – both third in the league – and blocks (89, 24 of them solo). Her 28 kills against Harding on Sept. 28 were tops in the league for a single match.
HU’S ARNOLD NAMED FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR
Harding outside hitter Mollie Arnold was named the West Division Freshman of the Year. Arnold was among the best in the GSC during her freshman campaign, with her 4.12 kills per game (391 total) currently second in the league and 15th nationally. She also is 10th in the league in service aces (33). Arnold also showed great two-way capabilities, with 285 digs and 25 blocks. She earned one Offensive Player of the Week award this season and her 27 kills against Henderson State on Nov. 2 was the most in a four-set match in GSC play this season.
CBU’S HWANG EARNS COACH OF THE YEAR
Christian Brothers head coach In-Sik Hwang is the West Division Coach of the Year for the first time in his career. The Lady Bucs were picked to finish fifth in the preseason rankings but Hwang – who won his 150th career match this year - had CBU in the thick of the West Division title chase until the final weeks of the season. CBU went 17-13 in the regular season, 9-3 in West Division play, and earned its first appearance in the South Region rankings earlier this season.
2010 ALL-GSC VOLLEYBALL FIRST TEAM
EAST DIVISION
|
Pos
|
Player
|
School
|
Year
|
Hometown
|
|
OH
|
Natalie Marsh
|
UNA
|
Jr.
|
Cincinnati, Ohio
|
|
OH
|
Sarah Roberts
|
UNA
|
Sr.
|
Maryville, Tenn.
|
|
RS
|
Ari Smith
|
UNA
|
Sr.
|
Shannon, Ill.
|
|
OH
|
Irene Hannan
|
VSU
|
Sr.
|
Athens, Ga.
|
|
OH
|
Ruthie King
|
VSU
|
Sr.
|
Winter Park, Fla.
|
|
OH
|
Thais Hollerbach
|
UWA
|
Sr.
|
Porto Alegre, Brazil
|
|
MB
|
Kara Gonzalez
|
UWF
|
Sr.
|
St. Augustine, Fla.
|
|
OH
|
Katie Johnson
|
UWF
|
Sr.
|
Tallahassee, Fla.
|
|
OH
|
Chelsea Wilhoite
|
UWF
|
Sr.
|
Jacksonville, Fla.
|
East Division Player of the Year — Katie Johnson, West Florida
East Division Freshman of the Year — Hope Rayburn, North Alabama
East Division Coaches of the Year — Melissa Wolter, West Florida
WEST DIVISION
|
Pos
|
Player
|
School
|
Year
|
Hometown
|
|
OH
|
Laura Farney
|
ATU
|
Jr.
|
Morton, Ill.
|
|
MB
|
Sarah Von Lienen
|
ATU
|
Sr.
|
Lakeland, Tenn.
|
|
S
|
Kera Dukic
|
ATU
|
Sr.
|
White Lake, Mich.
|
|
RS
|
Ashlynn Hamrick
|
ATU
|
Sr.
|
Jackson, Mich.
|
|
MB
|
Hailey Gillis
|
CBU
|
So.
|
Corpus Christi, Texas
|
|
OH
|
Mollie Arnold
|
HU
|
Fr.
|
Bono, Ark.
|
|
L
|
Emily Tate
|
HU
|
Jr.
|
Sasche, Texas
|
|
OH
|
Robin Law
|
HSU
|
Sr.
|
Phoenix, Ariz.
|
|
MB
|
Maggie Glover
|
SAU
|
Sr.
|
Waxahachie, Texas
|
West Division Player of the Year — Sarah Von Lienen, Arkansas Tech
West Division Freshman of the Year — Mollie Arnold, Harding
West Division Coach of the Year — In-Sik Hwang, Christian Brothers
2010 ALL-GSC VOLLEYBALL SECOND TEAM
EAST DIVISION
|
Pos
|
Player
|
School
|
Year
|
Hometown
|
|
MH
|
Ashley Saunders
|
UAH
|
Fr.
|
Olive Branch, Miss.
|
|
OH
|
Kelsey Williams
|
UAH
|
So.
|
Hoover, Ala.
|
|
L
|
Lauren Greenhill
|
UNA
|
Jr.
|
Florence, Ala.
|
|
RS
|
Chelsea Logan
|
VSU
|
Jr.
|
Littleton, Colo.
|
|
MB
|
Tania Tauiliili
|
VSU
|
So.
|
Watkinsville, Ga.
|
|
L
|
Anna Stoecklein
|
UWF
|
So.
|
St. Charles, Mo.
|
|
S
|
Tricia Tirabassi
|
UWF
|
So.
|
Kenosha, Wis.
|
|
MB
|
Lisa Odige
|
UWG
|
Sr.
|
Dallas, Ga.
|
WEST DIVISION
|
Pos
|
Player
|
School
|
Year
|
Hometown
|
|
OH
|
Brennae Benda
|
ATU
|
Jr.
|
Woodstock, Ill.
|
|
L
|
Corinne Doder
|
CBU
|
So.
|
St. Louis, Mo.
|
|
S
|
Kelsey Miles
|
CBU
|
So.
|
Cordova, Tenn.
|
|
OH
|
Kelly Nolan
|
CBU
|
Jr.
|
St. Louis, Mo.
|
|
MB
|
Samantha Anderson
|
HU
|
Sr.
|
Nampa, Idaho
|
|
S
|
Amber Schinzing
|
HU
|
So.
|
Orlando, Fla.
|
|
OH
|
Reagan Smith
|
HU
|
So.
|
Kopperl, Texas
|
|
MH
|
Megan Askew
|
OBU
|
So.
|
Weatherford, Texas
|
|
L
|
Allison Frizzell
|
OBU
|
So.
|
McKinney, Texas
|
Head Coaches voted for All-Conference honors. Ties were not broken.