Five SAC Volleyball Players Named To AVCA All-Region Team

LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Five volleyball players, including four from conference champion Wingate, were named to the 2009 American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-Southeast Region team this week. Wingate head coach Shelton Collier was named the AVCA Southeast Region Coach of the Year.

Fourteen student-athletes were named to the AVCA All-Southeast Region team. Four hail from Wingate: junior middle blocker Stormi Gale (Richmond, Texas), junior outside hitter Lauren Billo (Orland Park, Ill.), sophomore setter Liz Willis (Raleigh, N.C.) and sophomore libero Maggie Malone (Chicago, Ill.). Gale, Willis and Malone are repeat performers, as the AVCA recognized them in 2008 as well.

Catawba College's Mai Zoua Lo was recognized as one of three liberos on the All-Region team. Lo, who was named to the All-SAC first team as the libero, leads the South Atlantic Conference and ranks fifth in NCAA II, averaging 5.82 digs per set this season. That total ranks as the second best average at Catawba and her 640 overall digs was the third best season total in school history. Lo finished her career ranked No. 2 all-time with 1,919 digs and fifth with 145 aces.

Stormi Gale	Lauren Billo
Liz Willis	Maggie Malone
Mai Zoua Lo	Shelton Collier

Gale was named the Daktronics Southeast Region Player of the Year earlier this week. A three-time first team All-SAC selection, Gale led the league with 3.81 kills per set. She was second on the league charts with her .298 hitting percentage. Gale's 476 kills in the 2009 season rank second on Wingate's all-time single-season charts, while her 1,205 career kills puts her third on the all-time list.

The SAC Player of the Year, Gale led the Bulldogs with 94 blocks on the season. She also served 43 aces. Gale had at least 10 kills 26 times in Wingate's 38 matches, while notching 10 double-doubles on the year. She had at least nine kills in Wingate's last 15 matches. Gale had 22 kills, 17 digs and four blocks in the win at Newberry. She collected a career-high 24 kills along with 14 digs in the win at Lincoln Memorial.

Gale had 17 kills with a .645 hitting percentage in the 3-0 win over Pfeiffer. She had 19 kills, 12 digs and six blocks in a five-set win over Carson-Newman, followed by a 21-kill, eight dig performance against LMU. Gale had 43 kills, 25 digs and 11 blocks in Wingate's three matches in the Southeast Regional Tournament, earning all-tournament honors for the second straight year.

Billo led the South Atlantic Conference with a .317 hitting percentage, while ranking second in the league with 3.52 kills per set. She notched double-digit kills in 26 matches for the Bulldogs, while hitting .300 or better 22 times. She had 21 kills and a .486 hitting percentage in the 3-0 win over Limestone. She collected 17 kills in the 3-2 win over Flagler, while notching 14 kills and a .387 hitting percentage in the sweep over Catawba.

Billo had 12 kills and 10 digs in the 3-0 win at Lander. She had 17 kills in the 3-2 regular season win over Carson-Newman, then 18 kills against only one error in the SAC tournament win over Brevard. Billo notched a career-high 22 kills, while hitting .391 in the 3-1 win over Catawba in the SAC tournament semifinals. She had 15 kills with a .423 hitting percentage in the regional semi-final victory over Carson-Newman.

The 2008 AVCA Southeast Region Freshman of the Year, Willis led the SAC with 9.96 assists per set. She was fourth on the team with 2.50 digs per set. Willis was also third on the team with 35 aces on the year. She led the team with 13 double-doubles in the 2009 season. Willis had 38 assists and 10 digs in the 3-0 win over Anderson. She had 30 assists, nine digs and six kills in the sweep over USC Aiken.

Willis notched 41 assists, 10 digs and five kills against Lenoir-Rhyne. She had 38 assists, 11 digs and seven kills in the 3-1 win at Carson-Newman. Willis racked up 46 assists and 11 digs in the three-set win over Catawba. She had 44 assists and 12 digs in the 3-1 win at LMU.

A two-time All-SAC selection, Malone piled up a school-record 633 digs in the 2009 season. She ranked second in the SAC with 4.98 digs per set. Malone collected double-digit digs 32 times on the season, including Wingate's final 28 matches. She also led the team with 51 aces on the year. Malone had 34 digs in the 3-2 win over Flagler. She collected a school-record 41 digs in the 3-2 win at Lincoln Memorial. Malone also set a school record for digs in a three-set match with 30 against Newberry. She also had 30 digs in the 3-1 win over Catawba in the SAC semifinals.

Malone had 59 digs and five aces in Wingate's three SAC tournament matches, earning Food Lion SAC tournament MVP honors for her efforts. She had 20 digs in the opening round win over Tusculum in the Southeast Regional Tournament. Malone had 59 digs in the regional tournament to earn all-tournament honors. She is averaging 4.49 digs per set in her Wingate career, the highest total in school history.

In his eighth season at Wingate, Collier has continued to guide his team to new heights. Leading the Bulldogs to their third consecutive undefeated South Atlantic Conference season, Wingate finished with an impressive record of 16-0 in league bouts and a 36-2 overall mark.

Under Collier's guidance, the Bulldogs have won 100 out of their last 106 matches dating back to the 2007 season. Wingate captured its fourth consecutive Food Lion SAC tournament title under Collier. The Bulldogs have now won 12 straight SAC tournament contests. For his efforts, Collier was named the SAC Coach of the Year for the third year in a row. This is the second consecutive time Collier has received the AVCA Division II Southeast Region Coach of the Year award. He also previously earned AVCA Southeast Region Coach of the Year during his tenure at NCAA Division I Georgia Tech.

The Bulldogs topped the 30-win mark for the third consecutive year, collecting a school-best 36 victories while going 36-2 overall. Wingate also became the first team in South Atlantic Conference history to earn an AVCA Top 25 ranking, finishing the regular season ranked 24th.

Wingate was the top team in the Southeast Region all year, hosting the Southeast Regional Tournament for the second consecutive season. The Bulldogs are 100-6 overall for the last three seasons, while also winning 79 of their last 81 regular season matches. Wingate has won 46 consecutive SAC contests, while winning the regular season and Food Lion SAC tournament title four years in a row.

Carson-Newman's Stephanie Cutter, Lincoln Memorial's Amanda Horenkamp and Catawba's Shay Meeks were named honorable mention. Meeks led Catawba and ranked third in the SAC at 3.24 kills per set this year. She totaled 308 kills and hit at 22.1 percent. Meeks added 50 blocks which stood third on the team. Cutter, who finished her career at C-N with 2,548 assists, 932 digs, 234 kills and 77 service aces, was also named SAC Volleyball Specialist of the Week three times this season and garnered All-SAC Second-Team honors.

AVCA All-Southeast Region
Katie Beale, Flagler, OH, Sr.
Lauren Billo, Wingate, OH, Jr.
Justine Burkhardt, Flagler, OH, Sr.
Stormi Gale, Wingate, MB, Jr.
Jessica Howard, Augusta State, MB, Sr.
Whitney Justice, Lees-McRae, MB, Jr.
Mai Zoua Lo, Catawba, Libero, Sr.
Maggie Malone, Wingate, Libero, Soph.
Michele Remlinger, Armstrong Atlantic State, MB, Sr.
Luana Rocha, Lees-McRae, Libero, Fr.
Kristin Standhardinger, Armstrong Atlantic State, S, Fr.
Kathrin Standhardinger, Armstrong Atlantic State, MB, Fr.
Meg Weathersby, Flagler, MB, Fr.
Liz Willis, Wingate, S, Soph.

Region Freshman of the Year:
Kristin Standhardinger, Armstrong Atlantic State, S

Region Coach of the Year:
Shelton Collier, Wingate

Honorable Mention All-Region: Stephanie Cutter (Carson Newman, S, Sr.), Racey Bartley (Mount Olive, MB, Sr.), Melissa McCracken (Lander, OH, Jr.), Melissa Thomas (Limestone, OH, Sr.), Amanda Horenkamp (Lincoln Memorial, OH, Sr.), Shay Meeks (Catawba, OH, Soph.)