Koelliker Named D-I Independent Setter of the Year for Second Time
Nov. 21, 2006
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Orem, Utah - For the second consecutive year, Utah Valley State's Lacee Koelliker has been named Division-I Independent Setter of the Year and 1st Team All-Independent. Joining Koelliker on the 1st team is junior teammate Jessica Endres while sophomore Camie Manwill was named to the 2nd team. All three were also named to the D-I Independent Championships All-Tournament Team earlier in the month after helping the Wolverines to a second place finish. "I'm thrilled for their success and everything they've accomplished," said UV head coach Sam Atoa. "It's great to see how excited they are about where they are now." Koelliker finished her career at Utah Valley with 4,057 assists and a career average of 10.19 assists per game. She led the Wolverines to a second place finish at the 2006 Division-I Independent Championships earlier in the month and finished 3rd among all Independent setters with an 11.82 apg average. She was also third in hitting percentage and fifth in service aces per game. Koelliker excelled off the court as well, as she was named to the D-I Independent All-Academic Team and an Academic All-District selection. "She's a coach's dream," said Atoa. "She's meant a lot to this team. There's no way we'd be where we are today without her leadership and determination to make others better. She gave it all every day and never disappointed her teammates or coaches." Endres was second among all Independents with a .345 hitting percentage and was 5th with 3.54 kills per game. She is Utah Valley's career leader with 953 total kills and 285 career blocks. She was also named to the D-I Independent All-Academic Team. "She played at a whole new level this year. It was exciting to be able to see her consistently put up great numbers every match," said Atoa. "She challenged herself and because of that we were able to call on her a lot. Teams had a hard time stopping her." Manwill led Utah Valley State and was second among Independents with a 4.20 kills per game average. She was also in the top 10 in digs per game and service aces per game. "We had high expectations for Camie this year. Teams challenged her a lot and I thought for the most part she was up to the challenge, which is very difficult when you're expected to do as much as she did," said Atoa. "She did a great job and was able to be called on a lot. That says a lot about her preparation." North Dakota State's Sheila Parrish was named Offensive Player of the Year with Defensive Player of the Year going to IPFW's Peachy Jankowski. Mattie Johnson of North Dakota State earned Newcomer of the Year honors while IPFW's Kelley Hartley Hutton was named Coach of the Year. |
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