Wednesday, December 7, 2016

PORTLAND, Ore. – With the NCAA Division II Championships on the horizon, nine Great Northwest Athletic Conference athletes have been honored as Division II volleyball All-Americans by the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) and the Division II Collegiate Commissioners Association (D2CCA).

Alaska Anchorage senior setter Morgan Hooe and Northwest Nazarene junior middle blocker Madi Farrell lead the lists. Both players were named to named to both the AVCA first team and the D2CCA third team. Alaska Anchorage sophomore outside hitter Leah Swiss was selected to the AVCA second team and as an honorable mention to the D2CCA squad. Simon Fraser senior libero Alison McKay was named to the AVCA third team and as an honorable mention.

Five other GNAC players were named honorable mentions to the AVCA All-America Team: Northwest Nazarene junior outside hitter Kendra Bodine, Alaska Anchorage freshman right side Diana Fa’amausili, Western Washington sophomore middle blocker Kayleigh Harper and sophomore outside hitter Abby Phelps; and Central Washington junior middle blocker Sabrina Wheelhouse.

Hooe, the GNAC and D2CCA West Region Player of the Year, was the undisputed leader of an Alaska Anchorage squad that made the NCAA Division II national quarterfinals for the first time in program history. Selected as a AVCA All-American for the second consecutive year, Hooe enters the Elite Eight averaging 10.61 assists per set, 1.24 kills and 2.78 digs per set. Her .370 hitting percentage leads the Seawolves, but fell under the minimum of three total attacks per set to qualify for the GNAC statistics. Hooe enters the week with 3,803 career assists, 50 short of the UAA all-time record and No. 7 on the GNAC all-time list.

Farrell, a First Team All-GNAC and First Team All-West Region selection by both the AVCA and D2CCA, led the Crusaders to their third NCAA West Region Tournament appearance and the program’s first postseason win. The junior led the GNAC and finished ranked 31st in Division II with a .354 hitting percentage while finishing with 368 total kills. Farrell also finished third in the GNAC and seventh in Division II with 1.31 blocks per set. This is the second time Farrell has been selected to the AVCA team, earning honorable mention in 2015.

Swiss enters the Division II championship with 30 matches this season of nine kills or better. The junior is second in the GNAC with 3.55 kills and 4.17 points per set and is also third in the league with 0.39 aces per set. Swiss has 13 double-doubles (kills and digs) this season, five of which came over nationally ranked opponents. Swiss is the offensive leader on a UAA squad which enters the Elite Eight with a school record 32-2 overall record.

McKay was named the GNAC Defensive Player of the Year for the second consecutive season after leading Simon Fraser to its first NCAA Division II West Regional appearance. McKay led the GNAC and ranks fourth in Division II with an average of 6.57 digs per set. In addition to digs, McKay averaged 0.99 assists per set (102 total).