Top-seeded Stevens Institute of Technology placed four players on the all-conference teams and won two of the four 2014 yearly awards. Sydni Horner earned Rookie of the Year honors and Head Coach Glenn DeHaven and his staff were tabbed as the Coaching Staff of the Year. Nazareth senior Maria Allocco was voted the Player of the Year while Houghton senior Laurel Wroblicky was chosen as the Libero/Defensive Specialist of the Year.
Allocco brings to the table a conference-best .438 hitting percentage that includes a team-high 402 kills in 129 sets played. Her hitting percentage ranks her second in the NCAA. Allocco registered 23 matches with double figure kills and her season high of 24 kills came in a five-set win against St. John Fisher. She also has 69 blocks, 66 digs and 64 aces to her name this season. Allocco is Nazareth’s fifth E8 Player of the Year recipient. She joins previous winners Christa Downey (2001 and 2002) and Tricia Jones (2003 and 2004).
Wroblicky led Houghton with 5.44 digs per set (587 digs) as the Highlanders went 17-12 in the regular season and earned their first E8 post-season tournament bid. Her digs/set average ranks her 37th in the NCAA. Wroblickly has started all 29 matches to date, registering double figure digs 28 times, including a season-high 39 against Fredonia.
Horner is the second Duck to earn Rookie honors, as current teammate Mary Tobin was the E8 Rookie in 2013. She leads Stevens with 588 digs, good enough for 5.03 per set. Her digs/set average ranks her second in the conference while her total digs ranks her 25
th in among Division III players. She has also dished out 64 assists and served up 37 aces. Horner has totaled double figure dig totals in in 29-of-34 matches to date, including a season-high 40 digs against Houghton.
DeHaven and his staff led Stevens to a 29-6 overall record and a perfect 8-0 mark in the Empire 8 regular season. In the national statistical rankings, the Ducks own the 21st best winning percentage in the country at .829. Stevens is also 22nd in hitting percentage (.237) and 26th in aces per set (2.64).
Stevens will host the Empire 8 Tournament this weekend, with the winner earning an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
One member of each team was named that institution’s representative on the 2014 Volleyball Sportswoman of the Year Team. Empire 8 emphasizes that "Competing with Honor and Integrity" is an essential component of a student-athlete’s experience in conjunction with an institution’s educational mission. These honorees have distinguished themselves and consistently exhibit the critical traits as outstanding sportswomen.
Empire 8 2014 Volleyball All-Conference Awards