Volleyball All-Conference Teams Announced
Colby's Cleaver Earns
NESCAC Player of the Year
HADLEY, Mass. - Colby senior
outside hitter Cait Cleaver (Kennett Square, Pa.) has been just one
of the many driving forces behind the Mules successful 2005
campaign, and for her efforts she was recognized as the 2005 NESCAC
Player of the Year by the conference coaches. Cleaver and company
ran the table in the NESCAC this season, posting an unblemished
10-0 record along with capturing the 2005 NESCAC Volleyball
Championship, the first-ever for the Mules.
Cleaver, the NESCAC Rookie of the Year in 2002, also earned a spot
on the NESCAC All-Conference First Team for the second time in her
career. She received First Team accolades in 2003, and previously
had been named to the All-Conference Second Team in 2002 and 2004.
In her final season with the Mules, Cleaver currently averages 3.80
kills per game, ranking her third in the conference, along with a
hitting percentage of .286. Joining Cleaver on the NESCAC
All-Conference First Team is senior middle blocker Kaitlin Adams
(Athol, Mass.). Adams, a Second Team selection a year prior, leads
the NESCAC this season in hitting percentage (.386) and ranks among
the leaders in the NESCAC in kills (2.93 PG, 12th) and blocks (0.91
PG, 8th).
The six-member All-Conference First Team was also comprised of two
players each from both Tufts and Williams. The Jumbos were
represented on the First Team by seniors Courtney Evans (Bellaire,
Texas) and April Gerry (Holmes, N.Y.). Evans, a Second Team member
in 2004, is currently second in the NESCAC in blocks per game with
1.14, while Gerry ranks among the top 10 in hitting percentage in
the NESCAC (.269, 8th). For the Ephs, senior outside hitter Annie
Denison (Portland, Ore.) earned All-Conference First Team honors
for the second-straight year, leading the league in kills per game
(4.95) and ranking fifth in hitting percentage (.300) this year.
Junior setter Alexis Knepp (Austin, Texas) joined Denison from
Williams on the First Team, as Knepp chipped in 10.81 assists per
game on average for the Ephs, good for third among NESCAC
setters.
Defensive Player of the Year honors went to Colby’s Kendall
Kirby (Piedmont, Calif.). The junior libero leads the NESCAC this
season in digs, averaging 5.24 per game. Among a bountiful crop of
freshman candidates in the NESCAC this season, Connecticut
College’s Caitlin Tomaska (Solano Beach, Calif.) was the
choice among the conference coaches as NESCAC Rookie of the Year.
Tomaska is among the league leaders in multiple categories,
including kills (3.72 PG, 4th) and service aces (0.62 PG, 5th), and
was also named to the All-Conference Second Team.
Colby head coach Candice Parent
earned Coach of the Year in the NESCAC as decided by her peers.
Parent guided the Mules to a 10-0 finish in the NESCAC this season
and a 34-3 record overall, the most wins in program history. She
last earned NESCAC Coach of the Year honors in 2002.
|
2005 NESCAC Volleyball
All-Conference
|
| First Team
| School
| Yr.
| Pos
| Hometown
|
| Kaitlin Adams
| Colby
| Sr.
| MB
| Athol, Mass.
|
| Caitlin Cleaver
| Colby
| Sr.
| OH
| Kennett Square, Pa.
|
| Annie Denison
| Williams
| Sr.
| OH
| Portland, Ore.
|
| Courtney Evans
| Tufts
| Sr.
| MB
| Bellaire, Texas
|
| April Gerry
| Tufts
| Sr.
| MH
| Holmes, N.Y.
|
| Alexis Knepp
| Williams
| Jr.
| S
| Austin, Texas
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Second Team
| School
| Yr.
| Pos
| Hometown
|
|
| Caitlin Dealy
| Tufts
| Fy.
| OH
| Santa Barbara, Calif.
|
| Jaclyn DeMais
| Amherst
| So.
| OH
| Hillsdale, N.J.
|
| Lisa Drennan
| Wesleyan
| Fr.
| OH
| Ann Arbor, Mich.
|
| Kristin Quinn
| Amherst
| Jr.
| MH
| Pacific Palisades, Calif.
|
| Caitlin Tomaska
| Connecticut College
| Fy.
| OH
| Solana Beach, Calif.
|
| Jamie Wong
| Middlebury
| Sr.
| L
| San Francisco, Calif.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Player of the Year
|
|
|
|
|
Caitlin Cleaver
| Colby
| Sr.
| OH
| Athol, Mass.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Defensive Player of the Year
|
|
|
|
|
| Kendall Kirby
| Colby
| Jr.
| L
| Piedmont, Calif.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Rookie of the Year
|
|
|
|
|
| Caitlin Tomaska
| Connecticut College
| Fy.
| OH
| Solana Beach, Calif.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Coach of the Year
|
|
|
|
|
Candice Parent
| Colby
|
|
|
|
