Wingate Leads SAC Volleyball All-Conference Team

November 10, 2011

ROCK HILL, S.C. - SAC volleyball regular season champion Wingate placed six student-athletes on the 2011 All-SAC Teams, led by league Player of the Year Liz Willis, headlining Thursday's announcement of the conference awards.

Willis, who was also named the SAC Volleyball Scholar-Athlete of the Year a day earlier, had earned All-Conference accolades in each of her previous three seasons before winning Player of the Year in 2011 as a senior. She led the SAC by averaging 11.84 assists per set and earned SAC Specialist of the Week honors three times this season.

Willis is joined on the All-Conference First Team by two other Bulldogs. Anna Hilton, a sophomore middle blocker, was selected to the First Team after finishing second in the SAC with a .325 hitting percentage. She also averaged 3.26 kills per set, which tied for fourth in the league with sophomore Cory McGowan, Wingate's third First-Team selection.

Also earning accolades from a Wingate team that finished the regular season 27-0 was Lexi Potter, who was named the SAC Freshman of the Year. The North Liberty, Iowa native led the league with a .332 hitting percentage and finished third with 1.02 blocks per set.

The Bulldogs added one player to the All-Conference Second Team and one more to the All-Freshman Team as well.

Catawba, which finished tied with Lincoln Memorial for the No. 2 spot in the regular season standings, had four players named to the All-SAC Team. The Indians' selections included first-teamers Jordan Raye - a three-time SAC Specialist of the Week in 2011 - and Kaitlyn Whitmer.

Catawba also placed two on the All-Conference Second Team.

LMU had three players receive conference awards, led by first team All-SAC selection Blaire Fowler, who finished in the top 10 in the league in hitting percentage, kills per set and service aces per set. She is joined by second-team selection Candace Richardson and All-Freshman honoree Allison Beavers.

Completing the All-Conference First Team were two student-athletes from Tusculum - junior Sam Underwood and sophomore Caitlyn Dean, the first-team libero.

Mars Hill placed two on the All-Conference second team, while Carson-Newman, Lenoir-Rhyne and Newberry each had one member of the All-Conference Second Team and one of the All-Freshman Team.

Finally, Wingate's Shelton Collier was named the SAC Coach of the Year after leading his program to its sixth-straight regular season conference championship. Under Collier's watch, the Bulldogs closed the regular season with active streaks of 82-consecutive SAC wins and 50-straight regular season victories intact.

Collier has now won the award five times during his tenure at Wingate.

SAC Player of the Year: Liz Willis, Wingate
SAC Freshman of the Year: Lexi Potter, Wingate
SAC Coach of the Year: Shelton Collier, Wingate

2011 SAC Volleyball All-Conference Teams

First Team
Jordan Raye, Catawba
Kaitlyn Whitmer, Catawba
Blaire Fowler, Lincoln Memorial
Caitlyn Dean, Tusculum
Sam Underwood, Tusculum
Anna Hilton, Wingate
Cory McGowan, Wingate
Liz Willis, Wingate

Second Team
Nikki James, Carson-Newman
Shay Meeks, Catawba
Jenny Young, Catawba*
Brooke Christenbury, Lenoir-Rhyne
Candace Richardson, Lincoln Memorial
Maggie Murphy, Mars Hill*
Marissa Wixson, Mars Hill
Samantha Parrish, Newberry
Grace Krauser, Wingate

*Tied for second-team libero

All-Freshman Team
Lauren Santarelli, Carson-Newman
Haley Rhyne, Lenoir-Rhyne
Allison Beavers, Lincoln Memorial
Lauren Prachar, Newberry
Susie Murach, Wingate
Lexi Potter, Wingate

2011 SAC Statistical Champions

Hitting Percentage: Lexi Potter, Wingate (.332)
Kills per Set: Kaitlyn Whitmer, Catawba (3.74)
Assists per Set: Liz Willis, Wingate (11.84)
Blocks per Set: Nikki James, Carson-Newman (1.64)
Service Aces per Set: Susie Murach, Wingate (0.43)
Digs per Set: Maggie Murphy, Mars Hill (7.10)
Team Hitting Percentage: Catawba (.253)
Team Assists per Set: Wingate (13.41)
Team Kills per Set: Wingate (14.41)
Team Blocks per Set: Carson-Newman (2.65)
Team Service Aces per Set: Wingate (1.95)
Team Digs per Set: Mars Hill (19.82)
Opponent Hitting Percentage: Wingate (.070)
Team Winning Percentage: Wingate (1.000)